No Pain, No Gain
We’ve all heard the adage “beauty is pain,” which is, unfortunately, true in our culture. Today, we are appalled when we learn about painful beauty treatments that were popular many years ago or in other cultures. It’s difficult to conceive of 19th-century women wearing corsets that could have fractured their ribs or Chinese women tying their feet.
Even today, women endure discomfort all the time for the sake of attractiveness: whether it’s a Brazilian wax, hair extensions, cosmetic surgery, facial peels, or walking in high heels. It may be argued that every woman has a choice concerning whether to subject herself to these unpleasant methods. But is she truly making one?