How often to do we see little girls and immediately compliment them on her pretty dress or beautiful smile? It's pretty standard small-talk with the little ones in our society. I know I'm guilty here.
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| My adorable AND intelligent cousin, Alex. |
Is there anything inherently wrong with telling a little girl that she's pretty? Of course not. But Bloom is worried that all of our attention to physical appearance has adverse effects on these girls as they age. She's concerned, as we all should be, about young girls dieting, wearing makeup, getting cosmetic surgery, having negative self-esteem.
I definitely agree that we should remember to praise our girls for being polite, caring, creative, smart, etc., but I don't think it's bad to also tell them they are beautiful. In our society, there's no getting around the fact that girls are going to be bombarded with messages about beauty. And when my daughters are questioning their appearances because they don't meet some unrealistic standard they see in a magazine, I would want them to hear my voice in their head reminding them over and over again that they are, indeed, beautiful.
I think it has to be balanced. My parents swung to the complete opposite end of the spectrum. They never told me I was pretty, but were always connecting with me on an intellectual level. So I knew I was smart (and became very conceited about it, in fact), but I also thought that I was ugly because no one ever told me I was pretty. It took me a really long time to get over that hurdle.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree. I just think that in an appearance-focued society, we should be conscious of hitting the character traits even harder.
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