BS Doesn't Just Stand for "Beauty Sketches"

I think pretty much everyone's seen the new Dove "Beauty Sketches" ad about how you are “more beautiful than you think," but, if not, here it is:

I was going to write a response today, but someone else has already done a very good job of summing up what are essentially my thoughts on the matter.  Go read the whole post, but here's what I think is the key point:

“my primary problem with this Dove ad is that it’s not really challenging the message like it makes us feel like it is. It doesn’t really tell us that the definition of beauty is broader than we have been trained to think it is, and it doesn’t really tell us that fitting inside that definition isn’t the most important thing. It doesn’t really push back against the constant objectification of women. All it’s really saying is that you’re actually not quite as far off from the narrow definition as you might think that you are (if you look like the featured women, I guess).”

Maybe you are closer to standards of having a conventionally attractive appearance than you realize. Or maybe you are exactly as homely as you think are. Maybe your crows' feet really are that noticeable. Maybe you're not young, not healthy, and don't have high-status features relative to the standards of the person looking at you. The only reason those things should affect the love your friends and family have for you is if your friends and family are jerks. I know that being pretty really DOES matter – it's a huge social asset. But the problem with being not pretty isn't a lack of prettiness, it's that we live in a society with seriously confused priorities, thanks in part to corporate interests that survive by exploiting our insecurities.

I have a few more additions, though. Aside from this campaign, I'm not a fan of Dove's parent company, Unilever. If there is a social or political issue you care about, google “boycott Unilever” and you too will probably find something not to like: exploitative labor practices, support of oppressive political regimes, complicity in the plight of Pygmies, an uneven environmental track record, animal testing, products of dubious safety, ties to Monsanto, etc.

You'll also find allegations of racism. This is old news, but if you have forgotten or missed it the first time, Unilever also owns Ponds and another brand called “Fair and Lovely,” both of which market skin-lightening creams in Asia. The politics of these products are well beyond the sphere of what I can intelligently discuss, and Unilever is far from the only manufacturer of bleaching creams. But they don't exactly encourage the diversity that Dove ostensibly promotes. I realize, as someone who is about as white as a person can be, that I am not exactly the target audience, and it's not my business to tell anyone (especially someone of a culture and coloration different from my own) what tone they should want their skin to be, but to paraphrase Charlton Heston: Unilever, you can bleach my freckles off my cold, dead face.

Fair and Lovely

Pond's White Beauty:
 

More White Beauty:
 

Pond's Flawless White (this one is super-creepy):

More commentary
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2010/jul/16/unilever-hypocritical-promoting-skin-lightening

Other conflicting messages come from the advertising for another Unilever brand, Axe (in other countries, “Lynx”) body spray. The “real” beauties Dove lauds are most definitely not the admirers one is promised to attract by dousing one's self in this swill. Somebody recently made a mashup of Dove and Axe ads, but it's blocked in the US. This clip sort of shows it though:

So, Dove, asks, “If you could talk to a girl in your life about beauty, confidence, and self-esteem, what would you say?” I'd say wash up with something inexpensive that makes your skin feel nice to you and that doesn't trouble your conscience, and don't let advertising from the world's third largest consumer goods company cleverly exploit your insecurity about having your insecurities exploited. Literally and figuratively, people will say anything to sell you soap.

For those interested in Unilever brands: there are a lot of them, and it's hard to wade through the Wikipedia page or Unilever's “Brands in Action” on their site. The simplest list I found for US brands is here: http://www.unileverusa.com/resource/brandproductlocator.aspx

Drop down the “choose brand” menu.

UPDATE:  There's more good commentary at http://theillusionists.org/2013/04/the-problem-with-dove/ , which also points out that 1) Unilever not only owns both Slimfast and Ben and Jerry's ice cream, but that it acquired them ON THE SAME DAY; and 2) even the "real beauty" ads are photoshopped. Quote from the retoucher: "it was great to do, a challenge, to keep everyone’s skin and faces showing the mileage but not looking unattractive."

Dancing Wisely

A piece of advice to younger/newer dancers who might tend to view the less-technical style of previous generations with a bit of snark, disdain, or condescension: consider reevaluating your judgment. This isn't an admonishment, just a note to let you know what you are missing and how you may appear to others. It's okay to like whatever you like and to be proud of what you do, but I would encourage you to consider what your own dancing would look like had you begun your education in a different era, and what the top stars will be doing in 15 years. Yesterday's visionaries weren't any less gifted and industrious than today's trailblazers. The bar didn't raise itself. Don't be an airhead, and don't embarrass yourself. Appreciate what has come before you as the gift that it is.

I became a good dancer very quickly in part because of focus, discipline, and affinity, but I was also in a good place at a good time. But if I were 25 years old today and taking my first belly dance class, I could probably get done in 2 or 3 years what, 15 years ago, it took me 10 years to figure out. (This would be especially true in some sort of confusing time warp where I got to study from my own DVDs and YouTube videos and start learning now from the foundation of what my own students and students' students have done in their careers.)

This isn't just belly dance, by the way. Compare any Olympic time/score/routine from the 50s to the expectations for today's athletes. Or just compare your cell phone to the one you had 5 years ago. Our dance builds on the achievements of those who came before us, and continues to evolve thanks to the examples and challenges we set for one another. The resources that are now available not only make it possible for gifted dancers to get very good very fast, they continually push the standard higher, constantly shifting our perception of what is possible.

I'm not telling you to be deferential and respectful to your teachers and to dancers of previous generations. Do as you see fit—a gracious outlook is good for your mental health and good manners are a good policy, but teachers don't deserve all the credit for their students' work and respect should be saved for those that deserve it. But don't kid yourself about the foundations your work has built on. To think that your dancing (or mine, or that of fill-in-the-blank OMG Big Name) sprang like Athena fully-formed from the head of Zeus is pathetic ignorance and foolish self-importance. Stop advertising that ignorance, or, better yet, divest yourself of it entirely. You, lucky you, are the beneficiary of an amazing legacy. If you'd like to be a better dancer or just a more sensible grown-up, wrap your head around the idea that whether or not you like the legacy that's been handed to you is different from having the wisdom to appreciate it. Why appreciate it? The more you do, the more you'll be able to do something amazing with it. (And the dignity you gain won't hurt either.)

"Flowers" Music Video

"Cocktails" Music Video

I believe I have been typecast as a hot tomato! :-)