Killing us softly by Jean killbourne

I think that humans are driven by a deep desire to appear the best to those around us, and we will do whatever it takes to achieve this. Because the media is focusing on this human need, their advertisements were successful.  

Jean Killbourne in her documentary “killing us softly” succeeded in casting a shadow on various advertising platforms and content to achieve this goal. Three things caught my attention in her documentary: beauty, sex and wealth.  

I agree with Killbourne’s definition of beauty which is defined as having white skin, a slim build, a small waist and large breasts. In order to obtain the most perfect flawless image, either plastic surgery or computer techniques were used to achieve this, making it not real or authentic.  

I believe that a significant shift has occurred since the completion of this documentary, particularly with the invasion of social media, which makes it missing a crucial aspect and unable to reach the new generation. These days, all you need is that little device in your pocket to post the perfect photo of your manufactured beauty, and advertisement agencies and all these computer programs are no longer necessary.  

Regarding sex, the media is using it as a hot appealing topic. It is the essence of beauty and the hidden aim behind it. I was struck by killbourn’s method of demonstrating how the media seeks to depict woman as mere sexual objects and infusing sexuality into ordinary objects reality. These days, it is easy to promote sex and access sexual content, and that is because of the social media and the abundant content shared by individuals of all ages and backgrounds.  

I perceived her approach to bringing up the topic of consumerism as way to focus on wealth and money, not through creating wealth but rather by creating the appearance of wealth to add it to beauty and sex. From there we can observe promotions of various products and how beauty and sex are used for that purpose.  

Ultimately, I feel that we may become entangled in the web of these three: beauty, sex and money.  Therefore, falling into the beauty trap will result in comparison and low self-esteem, falling into the sex trap will lead to depression, and falling into the consumerism trap will result in emptiness.  

I believe that the contradictory standards we adopt in our daily lives and the conflicts we face are leading us to self-deception. Killbourne demonstrated this by pointing out how we oppose sex education while simultaneously using the image of children to promote sexualization. Furthermore, the sexual strategy we are attempting to draw attention to our beauty will dehumanize us, humiliate us, destroy our self-worth, and permit violence. Also, we promote the sentimental relationship with food and at the same time we define beauty as thin and slim avoiding food.  

According to Killbourne, advertisements are used constantly and everywhere- on television, in magazines, on the streets, and on large screens... This can be viewed as a toxic environment that has a deep cumulative influence in our subconscious. On the other hand, I observe that social media nowadays is present in our pockets all the time, poising our minds and influencing our actions and reactions. 

So, what do we need after all of that? We need awareness and change. We must respect who we are and understand that we are unique beings with a vast range of beauty that cannot be limited to color or size. We need to know that we are humans, males and females, are not only sexual beings. We must also remember that we are citizens and not only consumers.  

Amid the toxic environment and intoxicated minds, I think that we all need to hear our inner voice screaming loudly: Be authentic! After they are trying to kill us softly, we need to try to live authentically.