Kylie Jenner brings up the rear of the Kardashian clan at 19, and at only 19 has earned a lot of attention for her own, ugh, rear-end. As someone who grew up under the watchful eye of a camera crew, Kylie has had to face what many of us dread- the entire world watch you go through an awkward stage. Photos of my middle school self, decked head-to-toe in Abercrombie with a harsh middle part is something only select people are shown: and Kylie has an entire nation scrolling through her Instagram. With intense publicity comes intense scrutiny and there is constant criticism surrounding Kylie’s butterfly-esq transformation, including an Instagram account called @kyliejennersoldface that has over 40,000 followers.
Previous criticism surrounding Kylie’s lips resulted in Kylie admitting to having lip injections, but only after dangerous “challenges” arose involving girls sucking into shot glasses to inflate their lips. Kylie had originally denied getting lip injections, and though its entirely understandable an 18 year old girl would be scared to admit to augmentation publicly, the public is now more skeptical then ever. For a celebrity who is so transparent on social media, repeatedly posting pictures in revealing outfits, it’s easy to compare old photos of the star with her recently curvier image. But how toxic is the plastic surgery guessing game? Its easy to wonder whether or not Kylie has had plastic surgery, but the larger question looms- why do we care so much?
On one hand, the constant speculation alludes to a larger issue facing women in our modern-era. Kylie has the curvy physique women twice her age pay for, begging the question of how someone so young is able to look so old. Given her social status, fans assume she pays for it- Kylie Jenner boob job and Kylie Jenner butt implants are two of the top hits on Google for just a general search of her name. In assuming Kylie’s body is too perfect to be natural, are we assuming that the “perfect body” can’t be attained naturally? At 19, Kylie’s body is still growing and changing, and puberty can often do more to a body then a surgeon ever good. In a recent interview Kylie blamed her newfound curviness on a 15-pound weight gain, another perfectly natural excuse for the additional body mass. Yet it’s almost naturally assumed that her enhancements aren’t natural.
The constant speculation about her figure seems to operate outside of common knowledge, making it indicative of a larger issue. In raising the standard for proof around her body Kylie’s body becomes public property, subject to a line of questioning and suspicion not afforded to men. There has always been a societal pressure on older women to look younger, but now younger women are chastised for looking too old. Young girls are shown images of models with huge breasts and hips and told “this is the body you want”, yet when someone with that body shows it off they are told “this cant be real, you must have cheated”. The modern standard for sexiness is already borderline impossible, and by admonishing women who meet that standard we are further raising the bar. Maybe the question isn’t whether or not Kylie got plastic surgery, but why we care so much.
