Wednesday, May 19, 2004 AD OMG!!! The danger of plugging my TV back in to tape "Colonial House" is that I've found myself plopping down in front of it and watching much stupider stuff. The other night I watched "The Swan," a reality makeover show in which doctors rearrange women's faces and bodies, and therapists rearrange their minds. Each show chronicles two makeovers and one contestant from each episode is chosen to go on to compete in a final pageant to select "The Swan."
The contestants live without mirrors until the "big reveal" at the end of three months. In this episode, the last before the pageant, they showed several of the reveals in succession. Almost invariably, each woman, upon seeing the reflection of her Barbie-ized face and bod exclaims, "OH MY GOD!" Usually repeatedly. It struck me that they were being not at all inacurate. They were, indeed, looking at their gods.
Used to be idols, which are ultimately instruments of self-worship, were sculpted out of stone and metal. Now we can go ahead and sculpt flesh and bone and silicone and porcelain right there on the site of the object of worship. Add in a few "learn to love yourself" brainwashing sessions and self-idolatry becomes a much more efficient process all 'round. Ain't progress grand?
(Takes one to know one, by the way. These are the observations of an expert in self-idolatry.) Posted by Valerie (Kyriosity) at 5/19/2004 05:07:00 PM
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