Whether you wander down random roads or plan precise paths, the exciting journey we call life involves many choices. The decisions we make on a day-to-day basis affect everything. Questions such as, “What should I wear today? ” or “Should I really be eating this? ” are asked by many people everyday. Sure, a simple beauty magazine could probably answer both questions in one article, but in order to live a happy, healthy life there are more important questions to be resolved. Glamour magazine answers every question, and includes unique highlights.
Because of its superiority in the periodical market, Glamour has won over 75 editorial awards since 1990 (PRNewire 2). Much of this is due to its effective design in which the magazine is split up into seven main sections: beauty, fashion, health & body book, [men, sex & love], life & happiness, glamour news, and glamour buzz. Although there are numerous sections, they all tie into helping educate women on how to be happy with who they are and how to also make the most of what that is. Each part proceeds to give detailed professional advice on these topics.
Also by understanding the broad range of potential readers, this periodical includes less inappropriately intimate articles like some other fashion/beauty magazines do. By providing factual information that is also interesting, Glamour makes it easy to find the answers to every quintessential question one might have about being a woman, and in doing so, empowers them with the knowledge needed to enhance their lives A visible enhancement Glamour can provide deals with physical appearance. Beauty is a very important part of womanhood.
Many people weight their self-esteem solely on this alone, and although this may be unhealthy, it is a common occurrence in today’s society. To help relieve some of the pressures of societal demands, Glamour features articles that inform readers of the most recent methods to help them look their best. In the beauty section, the magazine includes reviews on new beauty products and the latest technology. This proves to be very helpful when purchasing cosmetics, moisturizers, and cleansers, or when pondering a surgical enhancement of some kind.
The product reviews detail how effective each product is and if the dollar value is reasonable for the function it performs. It also includes updates on the hippest color palettes for the season. Trends do come and go, and you’ll never be left behind with these updates every month. Another trend that is on the rise and doesn’t seem to be declining in interest is surgical enhancement. A study done in 2001 revealed that the amount of people getting liposuction increased by 313 percent between 1992 and 2001 (Ostrow 7). Because cosmetic surgery can produce varying results, it is very important to have all of the latest facts on new procedures.
One article in the March 2005 issue titled “Permanent Makeover: Sexy or Scary? ” talks about cosmetic tattooing or permanent makeup. In the article, Christine Lennon, a writer for the Glamour magazine, gives details as to exactly how the procedure works and the multiple outcomes individuals have had in the past. Although this article may have dissuaded me from ever embarking on such adventures, in no way does Glamour attempt to deter or even persuade an individual to receive surgical enhancements. The editors just want every reader to be informed when making decisions on such serious topics.
As a more natural option, included in every issue is a glamour makeover story. This shows the step-by-step process by which any woman can be beautiful with the face they were born with. When you accept the way you were born, and can then also find beauty in it, you have achieved a state of high self-esteem most women never reach. Glamour magazine helps to make that dream possible by featuring imperfect women in this makeover section. They show these women how they too can be confidently beautiful even if they’re not models.
The makeover section is definitely not the only portion of the magazine that celebrates each person’s unique beauty. It’s important to be who you are, and this magazine gives you the insight to do it with trendy eloquence. The editors of Glamour magazine see personal style as a way of expressing individuality, and why should this be limited by ghastly prices. The fashion section gives insights to new trends, with options to fit every woman’s budget. Finding great clothes at an affordable price can be a very trying task, but this magazine helps us out.
By searching deep into the darkest closets of stores around the world, they find great choices without all of the dollar signs. After successfully finding stylish clothing that won’t empty your wallet, the professionals inform you on how to put all of it together to make it work for you. We all know how great clothes look on models in magazines, but what about the real world without personal airbrush artists? Throughout Glamour there is a big emphasis on being comfortable and happy with your body. For example, in the February 2005 edition there is an article titled “Great-fitting jackets for all shapes”.
The article proceeds to give plus sized, big busted, and boy shaped women hints on how to choose clothing that flatters their own unique shape so they can stop wishing they looked like someone else. The editor explains that “85 percent of women cite fit as the top reason they dislike an item of clothing shortly after they buy it” (Craig 77). This magazine is trying to make America see that every woman is beautiful and can show it without permanently changing their biological makeup. This promotes a healthy outlook on life and generally increases happiness by also raising self-esteem.
Being happy comes from looking great on the outside and being healthy on the inside. That’s why Glamour’s health & happiness section is devoted to helping readers make health conscious decisions on a daily basis. On the topic of eating habits, Glamour attacks fad dieting as a major part of our society’s emphasis on physical appearance, in the article “The dangers of yo-yo dieting” by Dana Hudephohl. In this article Hudephohl attempts to dispel the urge to “shed 10 pounds in 90 days” and in turn encourages women to rely on healthy eating habits and exercise instead.
She even mentions the negative effects of rapid weight fluctuations and how it can increase your risk of heart disease (92). As a whole, this section of the magazine promotes body awareness. Knowing inside and out how your body functions can be extremely helpful. It aids in preventing certain health conditions and lets you know why and how they can happen to you. From avoiding cancer to accepting it through understanding, Glamour covers many health related topics to help women live more healthfully enriched lives. By aiding women in looking and feeling great, Glamour helps them gain the confidence needed to find love.
The men, sex & love portion of the magazine offers a variety of information. The magazine does not include vulgar or obscene articles like other women’s periodicals have been known for. This ensures that the material is appropriate for even the youngest readers. Even though the editors may be targeting late teens to adults in their twenties, there is no restriction preventing young children from purchasing this or any other beauty/fashion magazine. For that reason, Glamour focuses on romance and what it takes to make relationships work.
Understanding is a very useful tool in conquering these two topics of conflict. As women, we often find it hard to understand men. Their actions and thought processes are so different when compared to a woman’s. This magazine definitely helps decode their actions to provide some insight toward figuring out their thinking patterns. To show an unbiased view, Glamour provides perspectives from interviews with random men on such topics as the why they may choose to end a relationship. The magazine also has male journalists on staff openly ready to share their opinions.
Some of these articles include things like what they think makes a woman beautiful. All of this information can prove to be useful in the dating world. By providing helpful hints to what guys perceive the motives of our actions to be, we can strive to be less confusing as well. Despite what we may want to think, some of the riddles we pose for the opposite sex can be conveyed in a more concise and understandable manner to make our relationships less problematic. This bridge in communication is the only way sex and love can work in a relationship.
Working to accomplish a common ground of communication between sexes is just one step toward the ultimate goal of living a happy life. The life & happiness part of the monthly magazine deals with a woman’s wants, needs, moods, and dreams. Knowing things like why everyone procrastinates helps us tackle problems and overcome the obstacles they create. You have to know why something is happening before you can fix it. Also, this section always includes stories of inspiration – true-life occurrences in which women overcome difficult trials or contribute to amazing causes.
One of these stories has actually been a diary of Erin Zammett, a Glamour magazine editor, who was diagnosed with Leukemia at twenty-three years old. Starting in the December, 2001 issue and continuing every issue after that she writes about the daily struggles she goes through and how she still manages to find delight in living. Sometimes just learning how other people can be happy under worse circumstances than our own gives us a wakeup call to stop taking our own life for granted.
This also makes accomplishing impossible feats under terrible conditions ever more possible for every woman. Along with the need to fight battles in our own lives, there is the desire to know what is happening beyond the boundaries of our daily troubles. In the glamour news portion of the magazine we are informed about heroes, their causes, and the news of our world. As an intro to this section there is usually a featured celebrity or famous person. The article comments on the unknown strength and heroism within them. This pays tribute to the, otherwise overlooked, great women of today.
Without this section you wouldn’t know all of the amazing things some women are achieving, and as a result they would not receive the gratitude or respect they deserve. True-life stories pertaining to national and international news usually follow those articles. For example there is an article that describes the struggle to help the women who have been abandoned because of their unacceptable medical condition and who are now residing at the Hospital of Niamey in western Africa. It is important, as a country, to be educated about events that happen outside our borders.
Although they seem not to affect us directly, being educated on such matters is empowering. To liven up the mood of the magazine, Glamour magazine turns to entertainment. The glamour buzz section is jam-packed full of reviews and the gossip and the glitz of celebrity lifestyles. The reviews cover newly released books, television shows, music albums, and movies. This puts an end to searching for a possibly disappointing novel in the middle of a huge book store and allows you to at least have an idea of how that book rates.
There has to be some method to narrowing down the list of fifteen or more movies at the theatre. Admit it; between countless hours spent at the office, in the classroom, or running errands, every moment of free time you have is precious. Entertainment reviews make life easier by giving you another perspective before you invest your time in it. Of course, what would entertainment be without the celebrities? It is human nature as a common citizen to wonder what their lives are like. In this portion of the magazine, Glamour gives us an inside look into their private life of secrecy.
They also put a tabloid spin on things with their comical snapshot pages. On these pages they have compiled recent photos of celebrities doing everyday things, but they have also added assumptive captions narrating what they are doing or thinking. These are meant to be humorous and are quite successful to that affect. Comical articles can help lighten up the seriousness of daily life making it easier to deal with stress and heavy workloads, as many women commonly have. What you read in this section of the magazine can also be very useful in conversations.
Everyone enjoys talking about the new buzz in entertainment. Having the latest gossip can give you a social edge with coworkers or friends. Another benefit this portion can provide is a way to see celebrities at a more personal level. By displaying their faults it equates them to us, revealing how ordinary they actually are. This can boost appreciation and encourage the acceptance of our own not so famous’ status. Beyond the organized sections of the magazine, there is still more information to soak in. Pages dedicated to things like “Is cellulite history? r “13 things about men that annoy women most”, add more interesting research to the periodical.
These articles add to the broad range of information displayed in the magazine, but all of it works together to accomplish one goal – to teach women how to be happy with who they are. As PRNewswire wrote, I would have to agree that “Glamour is the only young women’s magazine to offer a 360-degree perspective on the reader’s lifewithout veering from its core message of self-acceptance” (2). With low self-esteem on the rise, women need someone to tell them they are beautiful just the way they are (Bear 1).
Glamour knows that with exceptional beauty, fashion, and health knowledge every woman can look and feel their best. The professional advice on men and relationships helps a woman expand socially, as do the various styles of news. By educating them on all of these levels, the magazine empowers women with the knowledge and capability to improve their quality of life. In doing this, Glamour magazine proves to be comprised of quality worthwhile journalism, equipped with factual and entertaining information that profoundly benefits all women.
