There are many things people need in this world in order to live a happy and healthy life; one of the most important is self-love. In a society where so many people are torn apart for their flaws and which holds such a cookie-cutter standard of beauty, without self-acceptance and pride it is easy for one to lose their way. From an early age, we are subjected to the idea that beauty is solely focused on appearance; appearance outweighs any personality, morals, and other internal qualities that make up a person. The word “beautiful” has changed from an adjective to describe a well-rounded person to the photo-shopped image seen on a billboard, magazine page, or other media source. Growing up in a society with increasing pressure to chase an impossible standard can be very daunting, especially on females. In an anti childhood obesity ad published by Strong4Life, it hints towards the idea that if you are an overweight child then you cannot have a normal childhood. By analyzing the contrast in colors, focus, and wording in this advertisement, we can conclude that this image supports the extremely detrimental idea that physical qualities triumphs all other aspects of a person.

        By looking at the colors used in this ad it is easier to understand the message that they are trying to spread. The main image is an overweight girl crossing her arms and the background is blurred. By using these dark colors it adds a depressing tone, suggesting that no overweight or obese child can be happy, or that most overweight kids aren’t happy. This message is inaccurate and can be taken as offensive, for no child should be seeing something that states that their happiness is contingent on their figure; children should not be feed the idea that their weight will define their lives. On the other hand, these shades of black and white can be interpreted as displaying the saddening idea of beauty being so prominent in today’s American culture. The fact that beauty has become limited to appearance truly is a depressing concept. Everything in the ad is black and white except “WARNING” written in red and large, capital letters. The bright red words attract attention, stressing the idea that this message is extremely important, which it’s not. Weight should not have a significant impact on one’s confidence, as everyone is shaped differently and this should allow him or her to positively help mold his or her identity without being under the scrutiny of society. Physical aspects should not categorize beauty; it’s not supposed to be a black or white concept, it is supposed to take a whole person into consideration, not just one aspect.

        Another manner of this ad that contributes to it’s meaning is the focus. Both the girl and the words are the only things that are focused while the background is blurry. This focused vs. unfocused lens portrays the contrast between appearance and inner qualities. Sadly, everyone in society might see this girl and focus on her weight, dismissing everything else about her: her story and the person she is. This ad confirms this by putting all the focus on her and her weight. This is bad because a lot of factors can alter one’s weight; such as their environment and their genes, yet none of these factors are represented in the ad. This is not fair, because many times kids are not in control over what they’re fed or how the appear. Having her all alone in the focus of the camera makes it seem as if she is alone, without friends or support. Knowing all the contributing factors that can accompany weight gain, it is not right to make her out to be all alone because it suggests that she is overweight because of her own choices. In general, focusing on the young girl and her weight is a horrible thing for an advertisement to do, as this should not be what people are taught or socialized to do.

        Obesity can have a toll on one’s health. However, it does not need to define someone or his or her life outcome. The words displayed on this advertisement, “It’s hard to be a little girl if you’re not” are the epitome of this screwed up vision of beauty. As a child, nobody should be worrying about their weight, as that is their time to learn and grow. Putting girls, or boys, down for their appearance is unacceptable and disgusting. Teaching young girls this idea of beauty triumphs all can have very horrible outcomes on people such as eating disorders, depression and social problems. Just because a girl may be bigger than the other girls in her class, does not mean she can not have the same experiences as anyone else. This ad goes against this idea and is showing children that they cannot be secure within their own skin if they are not the same size as everyone else. When one sees the word “WARNING“ in big bright red letters, it promotes a sense of fear. The fact that this appears on this ad makes it seem as if this girl, or any overweight child, is something one should fear. On the other hand, it hints that being overweight in general should promote fear. No girl should be afraid of who they are and no person should judge someone based on their weight, or in a broader sense, their appearance.

        This ad targets both parents of children and children themselves. It argues that it is not okay to be overweight and that even children need to be taking their appearance into serious consideration. For me, the best part of being a child was that I could go to school without brushing my hair and eat whatever I wanted for snack, because I was a kid and life was easy. I hadn’t been taught yet that I couldn’t have fat on my stomach if I wanted to be considered beautiful. I didn’t know that I needed white perfect teeth to be beautiful. I didn’t know that I had 

to resemble Jennifer Lopez or any other women I had seen on TV if I wanted to be beautiful. I was oblivious to the impossible images I would soon be expected to become, and for this I am forever grateful. The pressures put on anyone to look like, dress like, or act like someone they’re not are unacceptable, and to push this on children is even more unacceptable. Instead of promoting change and providing a physical image of what beauty is, beauty should be focused on all aspects of self, as this would help people love and accept themselves, resulting in much happier children, teens, and people in general.
