Beauty in our culture has become something that is striven for. Today, in our society driven by the media, we are going to many extremes to create this, such as cosmetic surgery. Cosmetic surgery is seen as a degrading and harmful procedure from any perspective, yet the question is, is it an appropriate procedure for those who are suffering from their abnormal physicality, or is it plainly wrong for everyone. Iris Young's writing on the 'Breasted Experience; The Look And The Feeling' concentrates on the objectification and significance of the breasts. She outlines all the risks and reasons for women's feelings of inadequacy and concludes that it is wrong in any condition. Kathy Davis in 'Reshaping The Female Body: The Dilemma Of Cosmetic Surgery' focuses on the problem of understanding why woman are willing to undergo painful, risky and often humiliating interventions just to conform to the norms of society.

Young views the "Breasted Experience" as either positive, living a life indulged in ones own physicality, or as a negative standpoint, being in constant dissatisfaction with

No woman is a 'Barbie Doll'. 'Barbie' has the dimensions that are inhuman and would topple over if life-size. We are living in a male driven society that is unfortunately suppressing the freedoms of woman to engage in their own desired sexuality and femininity and forcing woman to see their breasts as objects and feel the need to be cosmetically altered to conform to the norms of society.

Davis, K. Reshaping the female body: the dilemma of cosmetic Surgery, (New York: Routledge, 1995) pp.159-181

These woman were unsatisfied with their bodies and felt that cosmetic surgery was the only way to solve their problems. It was viewed as a struggle to fit in, to conform to the norms of society and to release themselves from their trapped bodies. Woman have the rights and needs to do what they please with their bodies and many woman feel that breast augmentations are fulfilling this form of justice. These women are not blind. They are not being forced by the men in their lives to undergo these surgeries. They realize the problems that can entail but feel these are consequences they will have to deal with. They have been faced with embarrassment in explaining that they want to have this surgery and would not go through with it if they didn't have a strong desire to do so.

Personally, I feel society is driving this idea to be beautiful by the norms derived from televison, magazines and mass media. Since I was a child, I have been surrounded by the 'ideal' body type. Barbie dolls and models are everywhere you turn. These women are portrayed as 'normal' and 'ordinary' when in reality their sizes and shapes are abnormal in our culture. But unfortunately, this is not what young girls and woman often see. Some woman only see one way out, through surgeries such as breast augmentation. There are many questions that come up when trying to untangle how right or wrong cosmetic surgery is. What is beauty and how has the media been so persuasive in altering how both men and woman view themselves? By comparing these two articles, I feel life is not black and white. We cannot and do not have the right to outlaw cosmetic surgery, for it is a right and often a need for some woman. Opposed to Young, Davis proves this by going directly to the women who have had t!

Unfortunately, most women do

Some common words found in the essay are:
Kathy Davis, Breasted Experience, , Experience Feeling', Opposed Davis, cosmetic surgery, Cosmetic Surgery', Davis Reshaping, Iris Young's, norms society, York Routledge, breasts objects, York Doubleday1999, conform norms society, conform norms, female body dilemma, breasted experience, society driven, female body, body dilemma, patriarchal culture, body dilemma cosmetic, surgery women,
Approximate Word count = 1543
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)