April 29, 2006
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Aging, an insult to aesthetics?
I met Teresa in the lunch room at work and had complimented on her beautiful face skin. She was so flattered and decided to share with me the products that she uses. I was shocked to find out that Teresa goes to great length to keep her beautiful face. She spends at least $600 a month on face cream and make-up supplies plus the many hours it takes to apply. I have compassion toward Teresa and at the same time was disturbed and angry toward the attitude being generated by our society about aging, that somehow aging is a failure and that God makes a big mistake.
I have met other people who have gone to great lengths to keep up youthful front with the help of surgeries and other products including hair-dying and anti-aging. The results may be superficially satisfying. But beneath these masks of re-carve and re-cover still remain a profound despair.
Women suffer with aging more than men do. This is because men traditionally had access to something almost as good as youth: power. Women have been deprived of this access until recently. A man could be wrinkle and gray, but if he held high social or financial status, his physical losses were offset. Not so for women. Where an older man can be euphemized as “distinguished,” a woman is more often called “faded” or over the hill,” and suffers enormous pressure to hide her age, often with painful results.
It is as if we are urged to fight a loosing battle against time, pitting ourselves against natural law. How ghastly this is and how inhuman toward both ourselves and the cycle of life. It is as if we are running around in the autumn painting the marvelous gold and red leaves with green paint. It’s a lot of wasted time and energy.
Is aging an insult to esthetic?
Comments (11)
I think women struggles more as opposed to men as they reach to old age this is one of the unfairness to life. However, it is because of this chief factor that allows me to practice the means of acceptance and be happy for what’s given to us without having high expectations of ourselves and/or others. When we learn to accept our old age and worn out beauty, we will be much happier with ourselves and life simulataneously instead of being in denial and build all these jeolous behaviors towards other entities.
Have a great weekend, Anh. =D
I think “young at heart” is the key!
I don’t struggle because I don’t fill my head with all those ideas of old is ugly and stay young forever. Love you, Judi
women…….
aging is an insult to the idea that were never going to die…..otherwise not really. Besides, eliminating most sources of stress and negative energy from your body is a better anti aging method than skin cream or whatever treatment.
We all want to be accepted in society as “new and fresh”
men and women.
No, because people can and do age gracefully. IT’s about taking it in stride.
There is a fine line between vanity and just making yourself look good for you. Only that person can draw that line. I am fairly vain but am improving. I have been dying my hair for sometimes to hide my grey. At age 42 it is mostly gray. I decided a month ago to not dye it anymore. This happened for me personally because I am begining to fill comfortable in my own skin for the first time in my year and I realize that for today I am not my image, nor my car, nor my job, etc… I am an eternal soul attemtping to live in the moment and that is just good enough.
Enjoyed the topic
Lenn
Like Sartre_said_”It_isn’t_natural_to_die”
I_think_that_is_why_so_many_people_find_it_insulting
That_and_the_very_nature_of_the_culture
Personally_I_feel_that_a_pretty_face_is_just_like_the_frame_
around_the_Mona_Lisa,it_just_complements_the_work_of _art
sartre is a fool.
dying is one of the most natural things in the world.
Aging is not an insult to aesthetics but the fear of aging and death is a obstacle everyone must overcome in order to truly enjoy and engage in life. I believe that our (society’s) obsession with youth and beauty are more indicative of our fear(denial) of death than anything else.
I’m sure most would like to remain young. I prefer to remain young at heart! I am on the down hill run and have worked too hard to think of not being here! Haver a good week girl.