The Dark & Twisted Side of Pretty Privilege:

Pretty privilege provides those that are deemed ‘attractive’ by society with an unfair upper-hand…

As attractive individuals tend to receive better treatment in day-to-day life, purely based on their appearance.

Photo from Unsplash by Fabian Albert

Pretty Privilege:

Personally, I think it definitely exists but the aspect of pretty privilege I would like to explore is the dark side of it.

I mean, in today’s & age where social media is king, it’s actually become easier than ever for people to leverage their looks for things like fame, money & clout/influence.

Pretty privilege (if you are blessed to experience it) has a number of benefits.

For example;

• Attractive women often get free/cheaper entries into clubs, free drinks etc
• You generally get treated better by people (as opposed to somebody who’s ‘ugly’ by society’s terms)
• You can garner a following on social media without doing anything particularly strenuous just because you are pretty/good-looking.

However, there is an unspoken downside to pretty privilege.

Photo from Unsplash by averie woodard

The dark side:

#1: Stress/pressure to maintain:

This can definitely be a side-effect of being regarded as pretty your whole life, simply because you always feel an added pressure to remain at that beauty standard.

This can appear in the form of;

• Body dysmorphia
• Eating disorders
• Overspending on skincare
• Anxiety

The pressure to maintain a certain level of attractiveness can eat you up & be exhausting to say the least.

This can impact both your physical & mental health.

Photo from Unsplash by Sydney Sims

#2: Fake relationships:

This may be a concern for some because there may be a reoccurring thought in your mind about whether they really love you for you or whether it’s only for a shallow reason such as your looks or your body.

Pretty privilege often comes with popularity (especially during school years), so often you may doubt people’s intentions because they may only want to date you or befriend you for status. (not because they genuinely like you)

(men sometimes date certain women only to impress other men/to have a trophy wife)

Experiencing this throughout your life can;

• Often leave you feeling very lonely/having trust issues
• May leave you feeling used
• Leave you feeling misunderstood because sometimes people can just look at you & make their own opinions of you/assume things when in reality that isn’t the case (e.g. they assume your rude/shallow/snobbish)

All of these will make one crave & long for a genuine connection whether it’s intimate or platonic.

Photo from Unsplash by Taylor Harding

#3: Harassment/Objectification:

This is arguably the scariest aspect of this topic because when people find you attractive, it can unfortunately make people forget common decency/respect and it can also attract unwanted attention.

In some scenarios, this extreme ‘admiration’ can cross the line, become dangerous & be categorised as harassment.

For example;

• A woman could be walking in the street, minding her own business & someone could randomly make sexual advances, aggressively flirt without taking no for an answer or even slap her butt without consent.
• A woman could be walking by herself at night & she may become a victim of catcalling, cars beeping their horns in admiration, uncomfortable comments about her body or even being followed.

All of the above make me wonder, is pretty privilege really a ‘privilege’ ?

Is it really something to strive for/want?

Nobody should have to live their life in fear of such things.

Photo from Unsplash by Mika Baumeister

This one really hits for home me because it really makes me wonder, what is wrong with the world? How did we get to this point & will it ever improve?

Let me know your thoughts as always :)