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the way todays male-dominated society wants us to behave. Yes, society would like us to think
that we strive for beauty because its a biological phenomenon, but its actually just another
political hinderance. Wolf wants to leave the reader of The Beauty Myth thinking differently
about themselves; she believes that perceiving that the beauty myth is just that- a myth- is the
key to unlocking another step towards liberation.
I liked the way the author presented the main ideas of The Beauty Myth in a way that I,
as a female, could directly relate to. Wolf is great at asserting the direct correlation between
womens freedoms and the expectations of womens beauty as a factor used by society to
control the limits of female power, and why we should care about this. Reading the arguments
presented by the author forced me to see the inherent dangers of the females mindset,
something that I had never before viewed as significant. However, Wolf does go a bit overboard
with examples and statistics, making some sections in particular a very tedious read. Some of
these examples span several pages, which leads to the reader not being able to keep track with
what was originally being discussed. I would have preferred the examples be shorter and more
concise; with more discussion linking them all together.
The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf, with its examination of what drives womans pursuit of
an unattainable ideal of beauty, was overall an excellent read despite being occasionally
wearisome when documenting evidence. Id recommend this book to everyone because of the
powerful and much-needed message it sends. It truly helps the reader break free from an
unhealthy opinion about the standards set for women and understand that believing in the
Beauty Myth strips women of their humanity and of beauty itself.