I look at Mischa Barton or Jessica Alba and think, "Life is just not fair." It makes no sense that they have "perfect" figures and I don't. That is just the way it is. Some people are built thin and sleek, others heavy and curvy. It's called genetics.
But images in popular culture create the mindset that being 5 feet 11 inches and 110 pounds is realistic and that Nicole Kidman's physique is completely reasonable to attain.
Yeah right.
The average American woman is 5 foot 4 inches and 140 pounds. Not really a comparison there.
It is impossible to pinpoint the perfect figure, if there is one at all. The ideal body has changed throughout history. Although I'm sometimes dismayed over my less-than-ideal figure, I'm reinvigorated by the notion that my body would have been at the height of fashion in the 1950s and that it was once widely considered beautiful. But guess what? It still is beautiful, along with every other body trend this world has seen.
Look back at the art of the ancient Romans and you will see androgynous woman with toned physiques and a strong persona. This image of perfection is found in Academy Award-winning actress Hilary Swank, a strong woman who took on the roles of a boxer in "Million Dollar Baby" and a transgender teen in "Boys Don't Cry."
The ancient Greeks' idea of perfection, as seen in their statues, was streamlined and soft, much like pop culture's golden girl, Charlize Theron.
Jump forward to the 16th century with the paintings of Peter Paul Rubens and you will see that a completely different body type was glorified: heavy and voluptuous. Our modern-day counterpart to a Rubens painting? Queen Latifah. Full-figured and loving it, she proves that skin and bones is not the only kind of beautiful.
The 17th century also emphasized shapelier figures, with women wearing corsets and bustles to create the illusion of a small waist and big hips. Sound familiar? Think Jennifer Lopez or Beyonce. They both created pop culture movements with their big booties and fit upper bodies.
Skip ahead to the 1920s, and the trend changed yet again. Having a boyish figure was ideal; women resorted to taping down their breasts to have the boxy shape. Nowadays, itsy-bitsy Nicole Ritchie exemplifies this look.
In the '40s and '50s, people returned to embracing their curves with Marilyn Monroe as the prototype. Jessica Simpson and Scarlett Johansson are just two of our most beloved modern celebrities who typify this look.
With the 1960s came a new wave of stick-thin models and waiflike icons, including supermodel Twiggy. Sienna Miller is our Twiggy, along with actresses such as Barton and Mary-Kate Olsen.
The '80s symbolized the aerobics generation with people like Jane Fonda leading the way for women to be thin but toned. This also describes the buff yet beautiful Angelina Jolie. Her stint as Lara Croft in "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" proved that she was not merely slender, but she also was fit.
The '90s were a time where health and fitness were thrown out the window and replaced with "heroine chic," as represented in the still-popular model Kate Moss.
All of these modern women are, were and will remain beautiful. Regardless of trends or shifts in public opinion, women should not get discouraged because they do not fit into the mold of the perfect body at that moment. The closest you could possibly reach to perfection is you, in whatever skin and shape you were born to have.