Janee Phillips
2B
AP Literature
Bransford

Final Draft There are many things in today’s society that affect teenagers, love being one of them. Teenagers willingly follow the crowd of whatever is in style. Even if “being skinny” or “fair skin” is what is in. Those teenagers who do not fit that category develop a self-hatred towards themselves because the pressure to fit in kills them. Teenagers do not learn to first love themselves and others afterwards.
Love is a mixture of many emotions; it can be happy, sad, and even playful. People often fall in love with someone they believe they can build a future with, or even grow together with. But what one is attracted to and whom one falls in love with can be two totally different things. Often times what one may want may not be what one needs. Society can trick people into believing that the star athlete of the football team or even the head cheerleader is the type of person to fall in love with because that is what you see in movies. Often times we forget that they are just movies and we have to experience life for ourselves. When experiencing life it is the time to realize what is most important and what one actually needs. Many teenagers get caught up trying to live up to movies or TV shows and forgets what they deserve because they are trying to live a “fictional” life. The main thing we see these days in school is kids rushing into love. Yes love is great, but you cannot rush it. Not everyone can have the all star boyfriend or the prettiest cheerleader, what matters is that you love whoever your partner may be unconditionally regardless of what people say about them. You should comfort them when they are low, and still be by their side even when they are high. In the story “The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things” by Carolyn Mackler, we meet a young girl named Virginia Shreeves. She is constantly reading “Teen Magazine” and “Penthouse”, two magazines that idolize superstars and beautiful women, she feels as though if she doesn’t fit the norms in this magazine that she does not fit in. Teen magazines have a high impact on the mindset of the teens and they seem to be very influenced by the information that is provided. For example,a magazine that is very popular of teens is seventeen, a world wide magazine that has a section thats dedicated for tips on teen dating. They no longer give the right message of how waiting for the right one is the best thing to do but are instead saying that if he is hot to go after him. Seventeen magazine also preaches how being thin is in, and as Virginia reads these things everyday she feels as though she doesn’t fit in.

“Mom has a hard time talking about my body. Her shrink side wants to reassure me that im fine the way I am, accept myself, all that self-esteem stuff. But her mom side wants me to be thin and perfect, like the rest of the Shreves.” Virginia’s family is a very tall, thin, and lean family. The fact that she is on the heavier side crushes her confidence. But instead of her mother being there for her and comforting her, she is killing her more inside. Her mother insists that she see a doctor about her weight when infact she is fine. Beauty can be defined as “a combination of qualities, such as shape, color or form that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight.” But how can you see yourself as beautiful when the only things that you know are beautiful are 6’0 125lb super models. “Typical dad, hes constantly praising thin womens bodies.” Now Virginia feels like shes not even beautiful to her father, its hard for her to find an outlet of anyone that will comfort her. It takes a long time to finally realize what beauty is. If going with what society says beauty is only the supermodels and only skinny women. But that is not beauty to everyone. Everyday many women are happy, smiling, and loving life, they do not walk around with their heads hung. They indeed see themselves as beautiful and no not all