Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder.

This saying is largely true, but modern society s mindset of beauty is increasingly homogenized where the media constantly present to us a stereotypical ideal of human beauty: a slim female with flawless skin, plump lips and a curvy figure. Based on this common notion of beauty , many modern men and women have resorted to extreme means in order to achieve their desired appearances. Furthermore, such notions have been heavily utilized and abused for commercial uses worldwide where celebrities become tools to promote firms products. As a result, many have long accused modern society as being overlyconcerned with image and beauty. On the other hand, others maintain that the society is actually less obsessed with physical appearances than we tend to believe. In my opinion, it is indeed true to comment that appearance is increasingly more important in modern society due to societal norms. However, we cannot generalize that importance of other qualities such as diligence, talent, and even health are being undermined and undervalued by image and beauty alone; such a generalization is definitely invalid. Hence, I disagree to a large extent that modern society is too concerned with image and beauty. In a study featured on Chosun Ilbo (Korea Daily News), half of all Korean women have had cosmetic surgery, together with another shocking figure that 8 out of 10 Korean women feel the need to go under the knife. Many people feel that the glamorization of Korean pop and Hollywood celebrities pressures modern society into prioritizing physical appearance over any other features. Another survey done by Tokyo University shows that 1 in every 100 Japanese women suffers from eating disorder due to dissatisfaction on their appearances almost the same incidence as in the United States. While it is undeniable that many people all over the world are influenced by the media s notion of beauty into changing their bodies and hence damaging their health, this argument mostly chooses to turn a blind eye to efforts by various channels, including social media, to correct this detrimental effect of modern society s concern over image and beauty. In fact, many of such efforts have proven to be successful in correcting the distorted mindset about beauty. Under Singapore s education system, students are required to attend civic and moral education, where a part of the curriculum teaches students the various eating disorders due to dissatisfaction on one s appearance and highlights the negative effects of such illnesses on individual s health. The death of two size zero models, the Ramos sisters due to malnutrition and the ban of size zero model Charlotte Carter from appearing in 2007 London Fashion Week sparked international controversy and raised concerns towards the modeling industry s use of overly-thin models, hence served as a wake-up call for the modern society s compulsive obsession with stereotypical image and beauty. According to a study by Karlstad University, Sweden, 6 out of 10 Swedish employers desire attractive staff. Another survey from Job Korea shows that 90% of Korean employees agree that looks are the most important factor in securing a job. These results prove that both employers and employees alike view physical appearances as a determining factor for whether someone will be employed. Sure, one s physical appearance has always been important in acquiring a job especially so as to score a good first impression with the interviewers who will decide his or her chances of working for the company. However, this argument is based on a

terribly flawed assumption that all employers value physical appearances more than skills or competency in their employees. No doubt, between two equally capable interviewees, the more physically attractive one will definitely stand a better chance of obtaining the job. However, the prospect of one securing the job in the future is a different story. In a survey by The New York Times, 90% of employers surveyed ranked Emotional Quotient (EQ), among many other qualities, as the most important factor for deciding which employee will be promoted into management and leadership roles, followed by Intelligent Quotient (IQ), while physical appearance is ranked rock-bottom. As such, we can safely conclude that even though employers desire employees who are good looking, one s capability and competency is definitely much more important than image and beauty alone in the workplace. No sane and wise leader will choose his or her followers based solely on their looks; unless they are fielding a team contesting for the beauty pageant, of course. David Beckham has always been regarded as one of the world s most attractive men, being an iconic figure representing masculine image and beauty. With his good looks and reputation, he has been paid to endorse various popular brands such as Pepsi in a $3.6 million deal and for Gillette in a $7.5 million deal, making him one of the most recognizable and valued athletes throughout the world. As such, many people condemn society for commercializing physical attractiveness of celebrities. The media uses appearances of celebrities as advertisement and promotion for commercial purposes. However, their argument places too much emphasize on the celebrities good looks, and undermined other attributes which attract companies to pay celebrities huge sum to endorse their products. Beckham had not become famous solely due to his appearance; he did it by showcasing his talent as a footballer through his career. His skills and hard work as an athlete gained him international recognition. First runner-up of reality TV programme contest Britain s Got Talent 2009 Susan Boyle, despite being obese and deemed physically unattractive , rose to international stardom when she moved audience and judges with her vocal talent. Subsequently, she released her own album which was a financial success and earned praises around the world. Beckham, a physically attractive man, and Boyle, a physically unattractive woman, both of whom are talented in their own field, show that one s hard work and capability are more important than looks in achieving recognitions from society. While it is largely undeniable that modern society has always been concerned with image and beauty, there are many areas in which individual s looks are not as valued as his or her capability, skill and knowledge. Where many global brands make use of celebrities image and beauty to promote themselves, organizations such as the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), with their naked celebrity photo shoot and sexiest vegetarian next door campaigns to encourage people to be fur-free and become vegetarian, are indeed respectable. As such, should individual s gift of good looks be used for good causes, image and beauty will become less significant an issue for modern society to criticize and to become overly-concerned with.