So, if a woman wants to be as beautiful as Beyonce, all she needs to do is give birth? Sweet. Motherhood doesn't sound so bad if you put it that way....
How many cliches could they get into that silly little piece? So she 'glows' with the joy of motherhood? Spare me please.
This fetishisation of motherhood is really quite an interesting socio-cultural phenomenal. I mean, however momentous it may be for the woman concerned, getting pregnant and giving birth is, biologically speaking, about the most ordinary thing any woman can do. It requires no skill or talent whatsoever. So when famous women - whatever one things of Beyonce's music - are lauded for doing what billions of women have been doing every day since the dawn of time, it really does say something interesting about our society.
And to my eyes, Beyonce is just as pretty as she's always been. I don't see any change in her beauty because she became a mom. The worship of mothers and the reinforcement of breeding is so deeply ingrained in our culture that people automatically expect that a woman will be beautiful to the point of otherworldy after giving birth.
I think the reality for normal women (i.e. women who don't have their own makeup artist, hair stylist, chef, stylist, personal trainer and nanny at their service 24 hours a day) who give birth is that they are more fat, haggard, worn down, exhausted and NOT quite so beautiful once they have a baby.
Personally I've never seen Beyonce as a great beauty. She's superficially attractive, of course, but up close her features look rather coarse and her much-hyped 'booty' not so very different from most women her age.
But that's beside the point. You're right of course in pointing out that if anything, motherhood makes women less beautiful than before. As well as the obvious effects of pregnancy and childbirth on a woman's figure, the stress, sleepless nights and sheer drudgery also take their toll, making mothers look older than their years. This doesn't happen to all mothers, of course, but I dare say it's a lot more common than women being illuminated by some ethereal 'glow' simply by giving birth.
Of course you could argue that such superficial things don't matter in the great scheme of things. Fair enough, but please spare us the inane nonsense about the supposed beautifying effects of motherhood.
I DO think she is gorgeous and deserves this title, though the whole thing is rather absurd, anyway... However, it should have NOTHING to do with her now being a mother. Not to mention, this may well offend/cause anxiety for the women in my life who have just given birth and aren't feeling so Beyonce-esque because guess what? They aren't rich, don't have outside assistance, and can't work out 23 hours a day to get back to their "pre-baby body". Puh-leese.
Funny... I was just reading a bunch of articles which questioned whether she'd really been pregnant at all. (Somehow I missed this controversy when it first came out.) Google something like "Beyonce baby bump deflate" and see what you get. Some photos from an appearance on an Australian program show her "baby bump" pretty clearly deflating/folding when she sits down. Hmmm. They did have to close off an entire wing (or floor) of the hospital for the birth.... Now, it seems pretty far-fetched that she would have faked the pregnany, but the photo sequence is awfully odd. And of course whether she gave birth or not, she's still a mother (which really makes people LESS beautiful) but it would be quite hilarious/disgusting if she faked the pregnancy. In the celebrity world (closely emulated by the Facebook world), anything can happen. "Baby bumps" are shown off like the latest fashion accessory.
Oh brother! That's all I have to say....
ReplyDeleteI was really disappointed that she was name most beautiful women.
ReplyDeleteSo, if a woman wants to be as beautiful as Beyonce, all she needs to do is give birth? Sweet. Motherhood doesn't sound so bad if you put it that way....
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteLong-time reader, first-time poster.
How many cliches could they get into that silly little piece? So she 'glows' with the joy of motherhood? Spare me please.
This fetishisation of motherhood is really quite an interesting socio-cultural phenomenal. I mean, however momentous it may be for the woman concerned, getting pregnant and giving birth is, biologically speaking, about the most ordinary thing any woman can do. It requires no skill or talent whatsoever. So when famous women - whatever one things of Beyonce's music - are lauded for doing what billions of women have been doing every day since the dawn of time, it really does say something interesting about our society.
And not in a good way.
My thoughts exactly.
ReplyDeleteAnd to my eyes, Beyonce is just as pretty as she's always been. I don't see any change in her beauty because she became a mom. The worship of mothers and the reinforcement of breeding is so deeply ingrained in our culture that people automatically expect that a woman will be beautiful to the point of otherworldy after giving birth.
I think the reality for normal women (i.e. women who don't have their own makeup artist, hair stylist, chef, stylist, personal trainer and nanny at their service 24 hours a day) who give birth is that they are more fat, haggard, worn down, exhausted and NOT quite so beautiful once they have a baby.
But what do I know.
Very true.
ReplyDeletePersonally I've never seen Beyonce as a great beauty. She's superficially attractive, of course, but up close her features look rather coarse and her much-hyped 'booty' not so very different from most women her age.
But that's beside the point. You're right of course in pointing out that if anything, motherhood makes women less beautiful than before. As well as the obvious effects of pregnancy and childbirth on a woman's figure, the stress, sleepless nights and sheer drudgery also take their toll, making mothers look older than their years. This doesn't happen to all mothers, of course, but I dare say it's a lot more common than women being illuminated by some ethereal 'glow' simply by giving birth.
Of course you could argue that such superficial things don't matter in the great scheme of things. Fair enough, but please spare us the inane nonsense about the supposed beautifying effects of motherhood.
I swear I love this blog!
ReplyDeleteI DO think she is gorgeous and deserves this title, though the whole thing is rather absurd, anyway... However, it should have NOTHING to do with her now being a mother. Not to mention, this may well offend/cause anxiety for the women in my life who have just given birth and aren't feeling so Beyonce-esque because guess what? They aren't rich, don't have outside assistance, and can't work out 23 hours a day to get back to their "pre-baby body". Puh-leese.
ReplyDeleteFunny... I was just reading a bunch of articles which questioned whether she'd really been pregnant at all. (Somehow I missed this controversy when it first came out.) Google something like "Beyonce baby bump deflate" and see what you get. Some photos from an appearance on an Australian program show her "baby bump" pretty clearly deflating/folding when she sits down. Hmmm. They did have to close off an entire wing (or floor) of the hospital for the birth.... Now, it seems pretty far-fetched that she would have faked the pregnany, but the photo sequence is awfully odd. And of course whether she gave birth or not, she's still a mother (which really makes people LESS beautiful) but it would be quite hilarious/disgusting if she faked the pregnancy. In the celebrity world (closely emulated by the Facebook world), anything can happen. "Baby bumps" are shown off like the latest fashion accessory.
ReplyDelete