Every time I scroll on social media, I am plagued by out-of-touch influencers trying to sell me things. Although I know they’re paid to do this, and I can easily ignore them if I wish, sometimes I fall victim to their marketing schemes. There’s always a new persona that young girls are pressured to conform to, whether it’s the clean girl, coquette girl, or the cool girl. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying these styles; if anything, they can enlighten young women to explore their personal sense of style. What I have a problem with, however, is the overconsumption that these various personas encourage.
In essence, these aesthetic styles are based on the glorification of product consumption. This is demonstrated by the shopping hauls, “get ready with me” videos featuring the 15 skincare products these girls use every morning, and the so-called guides that highlight the essential items for achieving a desired persona. This is a deceiving cycle: even after completing this checklist, another trendy item inevitably emerges, labelled as the next “must-have it girl item”. Naturally, girls flock to buy it before it sells out, driven by their desire to maintain this image. Oftentimes, they don’t even want the product, but rather the ability to impress other girls who cannot buy it for themselves.
Now you can see how easy it is for these girls to base their self-worth on whether they own the trending items. These products and aesthetics work as social currency; the larger their Sephora collection, the cooler they are in each other’s eyes. This creates an unhealthy dependence on external products for happiness, encourages unhealthy spending habits amongst young audiences on social media, and can make individuals who cannot afford these items feel inferior. This outlines the importance of awareness about how social media affects our daily habits, as well as how we perceive ourselves and others.
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