FASHION AND CELEBRITY

In the twentieth century, the cult of the 'fan' and the film star radically altered perceptions of the desirable ideal for a facial or bodily feature. Coincidentally, this occurred during the same era that plastic surgery — whose main impetus had been war casualties — was coming to be recognized as a major medical specialism.

Women were going to plastic surgeons demanding, not just a more beautiful nose but Marilyn Monroe's nose (Marilyn herself had a nose job). They didn't just want bigger breasts, they wanted Jane Mansfield's breasts.

To an outsider, it almost seems a primitive act of worship to deliberately alter one's body to resemble one's idol. On the other hand, it could be argued that the driving force was the desire of husbands and boyfriends to have a wife or partner 'like' Monroe or Mansfield.

To merely be beautiful was no longer enough. To be desirable you had to resemble someone who was desired by many — the ultimate triumph of human culture over human nature.

Today, with the well-publicised repeat visits of celebrities to plastic surgery clinics, we are more cynical about the naive idea that you can acquire a person's attributes by merely looking like them.

Yet, arguably, the desire for cosmetic surgery has now taken on an additional sinister aspect: the ability to afford expensive operations — whether needed or not — has itself become a status symbol.

The well-publicised disasters — like the porn film starlet whose breasts exploded on board an aeroplane, or Michael Jackson's undisclosed number of nose jobs — merely add the spice of danger rather than dissuading potential clients.

© Geoffrey Klempner 2008