Claire Chapman
English 101
Summary/Response Essay
October 15, 2015
Different Perspectives
Men and women are different; this is an indisputable fact of nature. Often having unique interests and tastes, the two genders have one difference that sticks out more than most; Men and women, in general, have very conflicting philosophies when it comes to how they look. Pulitzer Prize-winning humorist Dave Barry delves into this difference in his essay entitled “The Ugly Truth About Beauty.” Barry’s hilarious and honest explanation of why he thinks men and women see this topic from altered perspectives is compelling and full of logical points, though misguided when stating that men are oblivious to women’s vain efforts at looking beautiful.
In the article, Barry describes how, due to different models and expectations sculpted by society, men and women have developed different perspectives and attitudes toward physical appearance. He says of women, “If I had to express, in three words, what I believe most women think about their appearance, those words would be: ‘not good enough’” (Barry par. 6). He elaborates by suggesting that women generally have lower self-esteem than men when it comes to beauty and, therefore, spend more time fretting and obsessing over looking perfect. On the other hand, he claims that men do not care as much as women do about how they look; instead, men tend to find confidence in their own actions and abilities. Barry attributes these differences to society’s models for what a typical man or woman should look like: a rugged action hero vs. a picture-perfect Barbie doll, respectively. In short, the world has given men and women opposing ideals for physical appearance, and, as a result, the two genders hold the idea of physical beauty in very different lights.
Barry directly addresses one reason that women are so harsh on themselves when it comes to self image. He says, “But women grow up thinking they need to look like Barbie, which for most women is impossible, although there is a multibillion-dollar beauty industry devoted to convincing women that they must try” (Barry par. 8). This illustrates how unattainable goals of acceptance set for young girls can impose feelings of inadequacy, which are then exploited by industry for profit. I know this to be true because I, as a woman, have seen and experienced this phenomenon countless times throughout my life. Although I was not raised playing with Barbies, many of my friends were. At almost every sleepover, a safe bet could be made that we would, at some point, do each other's makeup or play dress-up in an attempt to look like these perfect models. That was only the beginning, and now I cannot walk through a department store, check out at the grocer’s, or browse my Twitter feed without seeing similar comparisons to ridiculously flawless (and unreasonable) societal standards for women.
Another point Barry makes is found in his remark about the tendencies of the average man in regards to physical appearance. He states, “They [men] would find some way to bolster their self-esteem that did not require looking like Brad Pitt. They would say to Brad: ‘Oh YEAH? Well what do you know about LAWN CARE, pretty boy?’” (Barry par. 9). By stating this, Barry draws a correlation between man’s self-esteem and his ability to achieve certain actions. I agree with this because I believe men do, indeed, place more emphasis on actions rather than looks. Take the high school weight room, for example. Men can usually be found having competitions of strength or speed with each other, but rarely have I ever seen two men chatting about whether or not their eyes look good that day. The idea of a man improving himself through his actions becomes more important to him than proving he looks good.
As Barry brings his article to a close, he speaks directly to female readers and tries to show them how men see women’s beauty efforts. He claims, “Men don’t even notice 97 percent of the beauty efforts you make anyway” (Barry par. 10). He follows with an example about how men do not notice the detail of a woman’s fingernails even though the women seem to care a great deal about it. This is one of the only points in the essay with which I disagree. I think this argument is invalid because I believe men do care what women look like, and Barry’s attempt to remove this idea from the equation when considering male/female body images is unrealistic. I have a brother, and from that, I can tell that men do notice. In my observation, men notice skin, hair, teeth, eyes, and much more in women than Barry gives them credit for noticing. He is correct in saying that maybe the minute details of these characteristics are lost on those with a “Y” chromosome, but his statement in the essay is too generalizing about what men do and do not notice, especially given that the statement is geared toward giving advice to the women it would affect.
To summarize, Barry presents an engaging discussion of how males and females experience physical appearance in “The Ugly Truth About Beauty” and shows how different aspects of society both cause and reflect these differences. He points out that different role models have brought on different ideals between the genders, and that, as a consequence, women seem to care more about beauty than men do. Though, the fact that men do notice physical appearance should be included and taken seriously when considering this topic. Physical appearance is a fixed issue in our society, and that is why, in order to either adapt to or change current perspectives, understanding why these standards exist is so necessary.
Works Cited
Barry, Dave. "The Ugly Truth About Beauty." Miami Herald. Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 1998. Web. 15 Oct. 2015.
<https://www.deltacollege.edu/emp/pwall/documents/TheUglyTruthAboutBeauty.pdf>.
Barry, Dave. "The Ugly Truth About Beauty." Miami Herald. Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 1998. Web. 15 Oct. 2015.
<https://www.deltacollege.edu/emp/pwall/documents/TheUglyTruthAboutBeauty.pdf>.