Plastic surgery sits at the intersection of bodily autonomy, beauty standards, and social pressure — and this session asked whether choices made under patriarchal conditions can be fully free. We defined the landscape from fillers to BBLs, examined the cosmetic surgery paradox (rising popularity alongside persistent stigma), and heard first-person accounts from people who have had procedures. The session centred on a well-researched video essay and an academic paper on feminist perspectives on cosmetic surgery, including a close look at what the data on body dysmorphia reveals.
Materials
Main
- Video essay on plastic surgery, feminism, and beauty standards — well-researched and covers many topics (YouTube)
- Introduction to social media and selfie dysmorphia (YouTube · 8 min)
- Podcast in Dutch: first-person experience of plastic surgery with Jitske (Spotify)
- Podcast in English: first-person account of rhinoplasty and fillers (Spotify)
- Paper on cosmetic surgery from a feminist perspective — read introduction (1), sections 2.1, 2.3, 3, and 5 (paper · ScienceDirect)
- Global statistics: Statista on plastic surgery rates by country and the ISAPS global survey 2023 (statistics)
Supplementary
- Video on the historical overview of plastic surgery — interesting perspective on capitalism's role, though slightly idealises the past (YouTube)
- Historical drawings of plastic surgery in the 19th century (book chapter · Springer)
- Fillers explainer — watch only the first 2–3 minutes, and where fillers go when dissolved (YouTube)
- Short paper on body dysmorphia and social media (paper · ScienceDirect)
- Study on Belgian teenagers: filter use on social media and likelihood of pursuing plastic surgery (paper · Taylor & Francis)
- VRT article: does pretty privilege actually exist? (article · VRT · Dutch)
Session structure
- Opening: how prevalent is plastic surgery in your environment?
- What do we personally categorise as plastic surgery?
- Where do fillers, botox, and hair removal sit — and does it matter?
- Definitions and landscape
- Cosmetic vs reconstructive surgery — what falls outside the scope (gender-affirming surgery, post-injury treatment, lipoedema)
- The cosmetic surgery paradox: rising popularity alongside persistent stigma
- Body dysmorphia: 1–2% in the general population, 15% in cosmetic surgery patients
- Numbers — who is doing it and where?
- 34.9 million procedures globally in 2023 — liposuction overtook breast augmentation as the most common in women
- Top countries: US, Brazil, Japan, China, South Korea
- Approximately 60% of minimally invasive patients are repeat patients
- Why? Causes and pressures
- Social media: the "Instagram face," selfie dysmorphia, and the end of the filler era
- Patriarchal pressure to look young — the relationship to ageism
- Capitalism and the value of uniformity: if everyone aspires to the same look, the same product can be sold everywhere
- Pretty privilege — does looking better actually give you advantages, and what does that mean for choice?
- The feminist debate
- Can you freely choose under patriarchal beauty standards? (choice feminism)
- "Medicalised problems": flat breasts, small penises, ageing faces — what does it mean to frame these as medical issues?
- Government policy: Brazil subsidised cosmetic surgery in the 1960s as a solution to class inequality
- Why is cosmetic surgery stigmatised despite its popularity?
- Objectification theory: is cosmetic surgery seen as "giving an unfair advantage" or "devaluing other women"?
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