Lookism: Beauty 


​...and i said to my body. softly.
i want to be your friend.’
it took a long breath, and replied
​‘i have been waiting
​my whole life for this.

― Nayyirah Waheed
Goal: 
​Introduce students to the idea of Eurocentric Beauty Standards and to discuss the different ways of looking at  beauty and inclusion. Students will engage in conversations to help them critically think about what they consider to be beautiful. Students will brainstorm on ways to move towards honestly defining beauty for themselves. 
The assignments that have activities are in red.
4. Eurocentric Beauty​
The Problem with White Beauty Standards. MTV Decoded Video (3:59)
When the video instructs you to go to Google. 
Stop the video and verify the information:
a. images of a beautiful woman
​b. professional hairstyles.
From your observations do you agree or disagree with the presentation of Eurocentric beauty in the video? You can also refer back to the video on The Body Positive Movement (4:09)
 4 Plastic Questions
Video 2:12
Video 4:03
ISAPS Article
Google: Beautiful Doll
Aesthetic Preference
For this section there is no write or wrong response.
This section is just to help you reflect on what influences your ideas of beauty.
Beauty Journey - Writing Prompt
Think back, as far as you can, to the first time you saw someone and thought the person was pretty or beautiful or handsome/attractive. What features did/do they have (consider eyes, nose, mouth, skin tone, body weight and structure). How does that person compare to the Eurocentric ideas of beauty? If they re exactly the same - why? In your opinion, did/does the person look like a famous person, and if so, how might that impact your perception of the person? What do you think influenced your perception?If you do not have answers to that question it is o.k., it is just something to think about. You can discuss the topic after you write about it. 
Discussion:
If you could construct the ideal person to spend the rest of your life with - what would that person look like. be as detailed as possible. You can either create a detailed drawing of that person or describe them in detail. Does that person have Eurocentric features?
Photo credits:  Girl with braids by David Nels. Royalty Free Beautiful Barbie