On Monday, December 5th, 2016, the nation experienced the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, otherwise known as "the sexiest night on television." Each year, this show brings mixed emotions, and as a result, social media typically explodes after the 60-minute event airs on television.
Because of personal experiences, I have always thought poorly of this event, and still do. This annual fashion show certainly has never helped my sister in recovery from her eating disorder, which is what likely makes me so defensive about this topic. Personally, what frustrates me the most is that the body types of these women are all identical, which causes an unrealistic and inaccurate standard of beauty for women. Further, the show is becoming unavoidable with the increase of social media and technology. Even if you choose not to watch the actual show, it is hard to avoid advertisements popping up on T.V. or your Facebook newsfeed.
However, despite what my own feelings may be, similar to last year, I decided to poll Facebook friends to see what their opinions of the VSFS are. Last year's responses really opened my eyes to a much more broad, varied opinion of the fashion show. I believe the following anonymous responses can help people to see how the show really makes people feel, and brings up ideas that may not be brought to light otherwise. Here are some of the responses I received this year.
One friend of mine spoke out poignantly, saying:
"I didn't watch the show this year, but because of social media and the models' influence on social media, I felt connected to the event. In all honesty, it made me feel low about myself and my body especially, more so than usual because I'm abroad and eating more than usual. I do, however, see how it's empowering and understand that the models work rigorously on their bodies as part of their careers-- regular people may not have time for this. But still. I'd imagine younger women/girls basing their self worth on the images of the models and fashion show prospecting. This all contributes to how they perceive beauty/the development of beauty ideals-- ideals that are very, very hard to attain and narrow/exclusive."
Her words beautifully captured some of both the positive and negative aspects of the fashion show.
Another one of my friends confided in me:
"It makes me feel disgusted; both because why is this still a thing? And also in myself (like why don't I look like that?)"
And another Facebook friend responded:
"I don't watch it, but from clips I've seen, I'd say 'saddened' because of the influence it sets for others, an often unattainable goal."
One Facebook friend even asked her own friends about it:
"I just asked my friend and she said she feels fat. We both thought it was boring, too, because all the girls look the same and they're not very diverse."
Other words used to describe how the show made people feel include "sad" and "uncomfortable." These were the responses I was expecting, and the ones I agree with the most. However, I did receive responses showing quite the opposite.
Other Facebook friends spoke out, saying the fashion show makes them feel "motivated," "confident," and "empowered."
One Facebook friend shared that the show makes her feel:
"Empowered- those ladies are fantastic at their jobs (and Lady Gaga is performing- YESSSS)."
Many people recognize that these women work hard at their jobs. Further, a lot of people enjoy the popular musical guests who perform (this year; Bruno Mars, The Weeknd, and Lady GaGa). Multiple people "liked" this comment to further show their support and agreement.
One comment that made me smile was someone saying the show makes her feel:
"Hungry. Definitely hungry."
So, what does this all mean? Is the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show bad or good? Or both? Maybe neither? The truth is, there's just no "right" answer. There will always be people who enjoy the show, and there will always be others who dislike it. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. There is no doubt that this show causes many women to reflect poorly on themselves and feel inadequate. This is not something to take lightly and must be addressed. However, it may also do us some good to recognize positive aspects of this show, such as confidence, hard work, and empowerment.
Bottom line: There's both good and bad in everything, and while we certainly are entitled to our own opinions, it may benefit us to consider the perspectives of others.
