The overarching subjects to which we are introduced in texts one and two is, without doubt, the focus (or rather the criticism) on the many and more to come plastic/cosmetic surgeries on adolescent girls and boys. Subjects appearing in the texts are for example, Valerie Ulene’s view on the increased procedures of plastic surgery, while Dr. John Canedy raises the question; does plastic surgery have a positive mental outcome, or does it not have an outcome at all, besides the physical result (such as with a nose job, breast augmentation or liposuction).
Camilla Sweeney says that people seek self-esteem through surgery. Valerie Ulene is a specialist in preventive medicine in LA. , and she wrote the article: ‘‘Plastic surgery for teens’’. She uses herself as an example on plastic surgery. She writes: ‘‘to say I disliked my nose as a teenager would be an understatement. Both its size and its shape made me feel as if I stood out (…) At the time, the plastic surgery boom was just beginning to gain steam and, for the most part, adolescents weren’t on-board. Times have certainly changed’’.
Well, the most vital part of this quote is the statement that the adolescents weren’t on board, and that times have certainly changed now. She refers to an estimation that The American Society of Plastic surgeons have made; they estimate that more than 330. 000 adolescents underwent cosmetic procedures in 2007. In this article, she introduces us to two very important people, Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Research Center for Women and Families, which is a non-profit organization, that works to enhance the health of women and children, as well as Dr.
John Canedy, president of the American society of Plastic Surgeons. Diana Z. says that the society is to blame for the increasing amount of plastic surgeries. ‘‘We’ve made a decision about what beauty looks like in this country, and everybody – teens in particular – wants to fit the mould’’. Quote – Diana Zuckerman It should be obvious to everyone that she has drawn the conclusion, that we’ve made our own mess. Camille Sweeney is a frequent contributor to The New York Times.
She wrote the article: ‘‘Seeking Self-Esteem Through Surgery’’, The first text, which deals with the problem of the increasing number of plastic surgery procedures. She uses the example of a girl; 15 years old who had begun to develop curves, but not breasts. This girl said that she didn’t feel like a woman, which shouldn’t be a problem, because at an age of 15 years old, you are in no way near to being a woman. Sweeney also brings up society as the major problem. She introduces us to Jean Kilbourne, co-author of So Sexy, So Soon.
He says that children living in this society are bombarded with images of the perfect man and woman. Girls and boys who want to be as perfect as they are face an unachievable task, because the majority of people in magazines are photo shopped. The conclusion would be that there aren’t any. There will always be people who crave perfection, and will undergo a numerous variety of numerous surgeries to get the result they seek after. To decrease the problem people should lay aside all the outer qualities, and instead focus on inner qualities. Engagement of the reader
Valerie Ulene – text 1 To begin with she has kind of a flashback, and these 5 lines are personal. This is interesting because, she is using rhetorical devices as pathos. She is appealing to our feelings, and this is one of the methods, which can be used if you want to have influence on the reader. In line 6 she brings us statistics from The American Society of Plastic Surgeons, and here she uses logos, which has an effect on the readers’ rational thought. It appeals to our logic and therefore is a use of logos. She also introduces us to Diana Z., who is the president of the National Research Center for Women and Families, which is another way to capture the reader’s attention, as well as supporting the reliability Valerie Ulene’s opinion..
The first thing Diana Z. says is: ‘‘We’ve made a decision (…)’’. When she uses the word we, she engages the reader in the text, because suddenly it is something that the reader is implicated in, causing them to start reflecting on what she/he is reading. At the very end she talks about having a 14-year-old daughter, a which connects to her own life, which is a good way to keep the reader interested in what she is writing.
My point of view Dan Childs – Text 3 ‘‘If they aren’t old enough to sign their own surgical consent for a medically necessary procedure, then they shouldn’t be able to induce their parents to do it for cosmetic surgery which is a personal, subjective, value-based decision, not a decision of medical necessity’’. Dr. Pete Costantino ‘’I believe the government should stay out of the mix (…) If the teenager is not a good candidate, for physical or psychological reasons, the physician is the best on to make that determination’’
Dr. Malcolm Z- Roth Firstly, the top quote indicates that Costantino agrees that it is a good idea to ban cosmetic surgery on adolescents, whilst the quote below is more comprehensive, in the sense that Roth talks about the idea that the government should stay out of the mix. While Roth is also not a fan of plastic surgery, he feels that it should be the physician who has the last word when it comes to undertaking a cosmetic procedure. My point of view is a mix of both sides.
I am not at all in favour of cosmetic surgeries, but at the same time, I am not against them if the person really feels bad about himself or herself. I want to refer to what Valerie Ulene says about her nose in the first text. She says that she has never really grown to love her nose, but has grown used to it; likewise, I like to believe that when you get older you learn more and more about who you are as a person. That’s why I am concluding by saying that it would be best to wait until you are 18 years old.