Jewish Life Digital Edition October 2015 | Page 59

chayil” (A Woman of Valour), which focuses on emphasising the
beauty of wisdom, character and kind deeds, rather than merely
the external, physical kind.
Contrast this with the findings of a landmark YWCA study
entitled: “Beauty at any cost”, which documented how women
and girls, engulfed with images of idealised, airbrushed and
unattainable female physical beauty, feel chronically insecure
and inadequate. This has made them into cradle-to-grave consumers of beauty products and put them at risk for lifelong
health problems from an early age, including chronic and unhealthy dieting, using smoking as a weight-loss aide and taking risks in cosmetic surgical procedures.2
According to a new study by the American Academy of Facial
Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the growing popularity of
‘selfies’ is having a huge impact on the facial plastic surgery industry, as social platforms like Instagram, Snapchat, etc, which
are solely image-based, cause users to hold an unforgiving microscope up to their own image.3

Hirsch Lyons Primary
And Nursery Schools
Under the dynamic leadership of
Rabbi Daryl Froom
Providing:
• A nurturing environment creating confidence in
your children
• We focus on instilling middos and derech eretz
• Introducing a new special needs class for grade two in addition
to the very successful grade one special needs class
• This is a Torah home away from home

MEET YOUR AVATAR

But if you are displeased by the self you see in the mirrors,
don’t fret. Now you can design a made-to-order second self
online, minus the blemishes. Known as ‘avatars’, these idealised identities are icons or figures representing a particular