Cause and Effects of One’s Appearence

A trend is something that is popular at a given time and is constantly changing. In today’s society following these trends can allow a person to gain acceptance into a certain peer group. Keeping up with trends however, can make a person’s appearance change quite frequently. Another major factor in one’s appearance is culture. Different cultures have different rules and guidelines that can greatly restrict or require certain appearances. For example, in the Hindu religion it is part of their culture to wear a bindi which is a piece of body jewelry that is worn in the center of a women’s forehead after they marry.

In places such as Cambodia and Thailand it is part of their culture to have certain tattoos, such as the yantra tattoo which is believed to protect against evil and to increase luck. These tattoos and body jewelry define one’s appearance in a strong way. Lastly, a major element of one’s appearance is emotions. Emotional reasons affect an individual’s appearance in multiple ways such as clothing, tattoos, piercings and hairstyles. All of those little factors can express a person’s mood in such huge ways.

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A certain form of this could be a tattoo of something or someone meaningful chosen for an emotional reason such as a loss or even a sense of pride. For every motive however, there is an outcome, whether it be positive or negative. A major negative effect in today’s society tends to be stereotyping and bullying. A stereotype is a commonly held public belief about specific social groups, or types of individuals. These stereotypes can lead to judging an individual based on their appearance. By stereotyping a person you can not only misjudge them but you can also hurt their feelings.

An example of stereotyping is given in Dreadlocked by Veronica Chambers - “But over the last eight years my dreadlocks have conferred upon me the following roles: rebel child, Rasta mama, Nubian princess, drug dealer, unemployed artist, rock star, world-famous comedienne, and nature chick. None of which is true. ” This demonstrates how being quick to judge someone is erroneous and cruel. An outcome of one’s appearance can be a change in a person’s self-esteem. An example of a change in self-esteem for one’s appearance is piercings. If a girl gets her belly button pierced it can result in her feeling more confident about herself and her body.

Another example is also going to an extreme to get a certain body type that one thinks will change their self-esteem. As stated in Drugs, Sports, Body Image and G. I. Joe by Natalie Angier “… planting in boys’ minds a template for a he-man’s body that cannot be attained without engaging in obsessive behaviors to build muscle and strip off fat, and then augmenting those efforts through the consumption like human growth hormone, and anabolic steroids…” Finally, another negative consequence that can result from a person’s appearance is career limitation.

Having a certain hairstyle, piercing, or visible tattoos can jeopardize a career. For example, many jobs require a neat, clean cut look such as a tie and suit for men, and dress pants with a blouse, skirt, or dress for women. In wearing these career-oriented clothes many employers prefer their employees not to have any visible tattoos or piercings, as well as a neat put together hairstyle. By not meeting those requirements a lot of employers will turn away a job applicant.

In a world like today’s where self-expression is often encouraged, but at the same time rejected, an individual’s appearance has an impact on multiple factors in their life. People use their appearance to project their lifestyle and choices, but this can have a negative influence outside of their culture or peer groups. Not every person with dreadlocks is a pot smoking Rastafarian, but people erroneously connect the two. Conversely people shouldn’t think they have to fit a stereotype of what a “model” person should look like.