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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Lifestyle
Jessica DeFino

I want to ignore beauty culture. But I’ll never get anywhere if I don’t look a certain way

Jessica DeFino Nora Ephron
An illustration of a girl reading a book titled 'Being That Girl'
Politically speaking, beauty standards are also physical manifestations of discriminatory systems. Illustration: Lola Beltran/The Guardian

Hi Ugly,

How do I reconcile not wanting to become a victim to beauty culture rhetoric with the fact that being beautiful tangibly improves quality of life? I’m an undergrad in university and it’s hard not to feel like I’ll never get anywhere professionally or romantically if I don’t look a certain way, given that it seems like all the other girls on campus seem to be able to fulfill all their dreams and also casually look like That.

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