Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

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so

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e e

a u t i f u l

beautiful

a nine letter word

four syllables that each and every one

of us has been taught to aspire to it

something that we strive to achieve for

every minute of every day

well i have some questions maybe you can

help me answer them

as a society how exactly do we go about

the business of defining beauty

is it’s an entirely arbitrary process

do we have a system a specific criteria

to be met

who on earth

holds the power to dictate when and how

this all-powerful word may be applied

well plato once famously said that

beauty is in the eye of the beholder i’m

sure we’ve all heard it

a quote filled with good intent yet ever

as misleading

because if it were true then it wouldn’t

be only four percent of the women alive

today who would consider themselves

beautiful

if it were true then the fashion and

makeup industry wouldn’t be able to prey

on the insecurities of young men and

women for profit i mean a multi-trillion

dollar industry built entirely upon the

ideas of exclusivity and separation on

the concept of us versus them wouldn’t

survive and thrive the way it does in a

world where these words rang true

the global beauty industry is worth

approximately

511 billion dollars that’s a big number

the global education industry is only

worth five thousand four hundred and

forty nine million dollars

this means that every year more money is

spent on fashion and makeup than on

educating the minds of tomorrow

that we deem physical appearance to be

more important than even the most basic

of competency

far beyond the industry itself prominent

issues such as bullying and self-hatred

stem from the promotion of these hateful

and degrading ideologies

don’t believe me

when you woke up this morning got

dressed looked in the mirror

did you think you looked beautiful did

you poke and prod at every little thing

that they might notice

did you count all the unflattering

angles that they might happen to see

maybe not today but what about this week

this month

i hope you understand that i must

disagree with plato when i say that all

of us have been brought up in a society

that does not allow for any difference

of opinion when defining beauty

well why don’t we look for an

alternative definition for the same i’m

sure we’ll all up to the task

beauty

is a combination of unique features in

any shape form color or size you could

imagine that is pleasing to the

aesthetic senses

see i like this definition far more

because it showcases our greatest

defense towards discrimination

inclusivity

the simple representation of features

not usually portrayed in the media could

be the key to dismantling the repressive

systems currently in place

and enable the building of new and

modern ways of thinking

but hitting closer to home

the little things make a huge difference

include a figure that you wouldn’t

usually consider your next art class

compliment a stranger on something that

some may find unusual

but more importantly

do it for yourself

put on an outfit and skip the pokken and

the prodding

wear some makeup and don’t count the

angles

redefine your beauty on your own terms

because while i may not have all the

answers i can tell you this

beauty is only ever meaningful when it

is self-realized

so

in any way you can i encourage you to

see the world around you from a

different perspective and appreciate

those living in it as i conclude and in

case you forgot

dear young boy and dear young girl

you are beautiful

thank you

[Applause]

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you