Do good-looking people get special treatment?

[dad]

Do folks who are "easier on the eyes" recieve better treatment than those whose looks are average? Do people tend to trust good looking people more than others? Are there any disadvantages to being attractive? Discuss.

 

[Midnight shadow]

I'd like to say that being attractive doesn't make a difference in how you are treated, but it would be a lie. The fact is that humans make judgements based a lot on appearances, something that is innate with most animals. An animal looking for a mating partner will naturally go for the strongest/most attractive suiter, regardless of their personality. It's an instinct we all have inside us.

Now of course we aren't as cold as most animals and are a lot more forgiving when it comes to appearance, but even though we surpress it, the instinct is still there.

 

[OuterTsuchinoko]

Yes, I would say it is a fact of life. I have even been guilty of this too, giving pretty girls special treatment at various jobs I have had. I never did it for every single pretty person who came in, but sometimes it would just be an automatic compulsion in me to do something extra or nice.

 

[Her]

I think it's a moot point that attractive people are commonly treated better or are often afforded better opportunities based on their looks. It's a rather simple fact that if you look hot, you are more likely to be treated with reverence or simple basic respect that is not so easily afforded to the unattractive. There are entire industries based on looking good or being pressured to look good, billion dollar businesses based on maximising one's looks for sexual, financial or social gain.

The bigger question is what influences our decisions on what is 'good looking', and how those people are treated compared to others not so 'fortunate'. What cultural & social influences impact our common consensus? What kind of insidious biases are at play?

For starters, it's not a secret that in North America and post-colonial countries, whiteness is often considered the standard in what defines beauty. Naturally it is not typically said that directly, as the people who would say that without a hint of disappointment in the matter tend to be people who have Stormfront accounts. But when Eurocentrism is quite literally the 'golden ratio' for attractiveness, there isn't that much room for sidestepping the obvious implications. Make no mistake - the lighter your skin tone, the whiter your facial features, the easier it is to be classified as beautiful in most countries around the world. The bigger issue is when people who do not genetically fall in or close to that narrow standard internalise the wrong message of what is beauty, what is good, etc. Internalised racism is much different to other internalised standards of physical attractiveness, as it comes directly from white power structures reinforcing a race-based ideal of beauty. Criticising naturally big lips (as opposed to 'plumped up' lips afforded by surgery which are praised), encouraging people to lighten their darker skin tones, the huge trend of eyelid surgeries in South Korea, it goes on. I'm sure there is a better way to say this as I am typing this on my break at work. Anyway, I don't consider it my place to speak for people on this matter. But if you look, the stories are everywhere. Be sure to understand that I'm not using this as a blanket statement, or judging people in the slightest. I'm just commenting on a well-documented problem.

In short, you can't comment on beauty and the benefits of being beautiful without commenting on one of the big influences on what defines beauty today.

 

[gimmepie]

Unless I missed the point, Harley's hit most of it on the head. I would add though that it's a biological thing too. We're more inclined to treat people we find attractive better because we want to attract them ourselves.

 

[Pebbles]

Do folks who are "easier on the eyes" recieve better treatment than those whose looks are average?

8 outta 10 times, YES and i hate people for it :|
it is so unfair to judge anybody by their looks and then treat them different if they do not look good enough in your opinion, for example...
''oh that guy is so fat and ugly, he is not worth it to be nice too, he is so fat and ugly, he doesn't deserve any kind words from me, i do not want to speak to him, i do not even want to look at him''

like i know a lot of people go through life that way thinking like that exactly, if not similar to that and that is so sad.

so what somebody is fat or has no PRETTY PRETTY face in your opinion, grow up, it is not like your eyes are burning cause of it, it is not like it is making you blind....

for god sake people
when are we going to learn to treat each other as equals{:3}

just because that other person is not fat and because they got a cute face, doesn't mean they deserve more respect than the other person standing next to them who has got a beer belly and weird hair or something​

 

[Thepokefansophia]

Yes I think good-looking people get more better treatment. TBH even if we say dont judge others based on their appearances. We do it anyway. Its sad but that`s what people are like sometimes.
Honestly in my experience I have given better treatment to more attractive people over someone who is not as attractive. Honestly as someone with self-esteem issues I have been a bit wary of super pretty girls as generally the girls that inhabit my school are snakes basically.

 

[Purist of Black Water]

I know I get treated differently by women because of my looks
they always seem so eager to help me out,
when the same individuals come across, someone of let's say, less appealing they are ignored.

This is when I go shopping btw.

I think looks are used to the wrong effect in this day and age.
While we celebrate natural beauty, we crush those who are less attractive than ourselves.
it's just not right.

Though we are a foundation of stereotypical shallowness
and fake demeanours. most of all.

 

[Fannie]

I used to be considerably less fugly and definitely don't get treated as nicely as I did back then lol.

 

[Esper]

Haven't there been studies, like with control groups and such, that more or less prove this is the case?

I mean, I'm sure there are exceptions, and in some places what is considered "beautiful" might not be the same (though HQ's point is well taken) so a "beautiful" person might not always get special treatment, but it seems to be much more common. Look at the actors, the CEOs, the politicians. They're not all good looking but on average they're a cut above.

And of course it's not like pretty people get special attention, but if you're "ugly" you might get worse treatment than if someone didn't know what you looked like.

 

[Crystal Berry]

Do attractive people receive better treatment? Yes and no. Yes because of the reasons many have stated. Many people will marvel at you.

In some ways beautiful people get even worse treatment. You know, like getting objectified, and cat called constantly. I had a friend named Amber and she's the perfect example I could give. She has a pretty face, very clear skin, and probably the prettiest hip-length hair I've ever seen. She's what I'd consider a beauty guru because she has a very strict beauty and health care routine.

She's complimented constantly by both men and women for her looks. She's also had men stalk her, harass her verbally and physically, bribe her to go out with them and more. She's also been cat called more times than she could ever begin to count, and she's afraid to go out at night.

So yes, there are definitely some disadvantages to being considered beautiful. >_>