The Pygmalion Paradigm: How Kylie and Kris Jenner Are Shaping Beauty Culture
In a world where artificial intelligence is increasingly prevalent, the boundaries between reality and artificiality are becoming increasingly blurred. Nowhere is this more evident than in the world of beauty culture, where celebrities like Kylie and Kris Jenner are leading the charge. According to a recent article in The New York Times, the mother-daughter duo is ushering in a new era of beauty culture, one where plastic surgery is not only acknowledged but also celebrated.
The article, which explores the changing attitudes towards plastic surgery, notes that the Jenners are at the forefront of a shift in the way we think about beauty and the human body. As The New York Times reports, “Kris Jenner, 69, blew up social media last month when she was photographed in Paris looking decades younger, and sporting a coif reminiscent of an earlier American celebrity in Paris: Josephine Baker.” The new ‘do — ultra-black, short, shiny and slicked back — exposed every re-sculpted angle of Ms. Jenner’s face, and was punctuated by a perfect circle of a forehead curl.
The New York Times article goes on to note that the Jenners’ openness about their plastic surgery is a significant departure from the usual secrecy surrounding the subject. As the article states, “Following much media speculation, a representative for Ms. Jenner told Page Six, ‘We can confirm that Dr. Steven Levine did Kris Jenner’s recent work.'” This level of transparency is a relatively new development in the world of celebrity culture, where plastic surgery was once considered a taboo subject.
Kylie Jenner, in particular, has been open about her own plastic surgery, revealing on TikTok the details of her breast augmentation. As The New York Times reports, “Kylie, went a step further, revealing on TikTok a startling level of detail about her breast augmentation: ‘445 cc, moderate profile, half under the muscle!!!!! silicone!!! garth fisher!!! hope this helps lol.'” This level of detail is unusual in the world of celebrity culture, where plastic surgery is often shrouded in secrecy.
The implications of the Jenners’ openness about their plastic surgery are significant. As The New York Times notes, “The elder Ms. Jenner can now wear her face and the younger Ms. Jenner her breasts as they would couture gowns. Their surgeons’ names anoint their body parts with the glow of purchased exclusivity, metamorphosing flesh into inanimate luxuries, like ivory or jewels, the Pygmalion story in reverse.”
This shift in the way we think about beauty and the human body has significant implications for our culture as a whole. As The New York Times reports, “We all grapple increasingly with determining what is real. The internet bombards us with messages of indeterminate provenance. Is that cute tiger cub real or A.I.-generated? Was that article written by an expert or a bot? And, as many professors now wonder: Did my student produce this assignment or did ChatGPT? Or both?”
The Jenners’ openness about their plastic surgery is also reflective of a broader cultural trend. As The New York Times notes, “Always at the vanguard of culture, the Jenners have added their physical selves to the list of things generated by technology. In other words, they manifest the end of organically ‘authored’ bodies, merging celebrity culture fully with A.I. culture.”
The intersection of technology and celebrity culture is a fascinating topic, and one that is explored in more depth in a recent Broadway production. As The New York Times reports, “On Sunday night, the Tony Awards confirmed that Broadway, too, has entered reverse-Pygmalion mode: Sarah Snook and Nicole Scherzinger won awards for their performances in ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ and ‘Sunset Boulevard,’ respectively.”
Both plays explore the theme of beauty and the human body, and feature innovative uses of technology to blur the distinction between human beings and virtual simulacra. As The New York Times notes, “In ‘Dorian Gray,’ Ms. Snook portrays an astonishing 26 characters, many of whom appear only as filmed images, yet somehow, through stage trickery, can seem to be seated all together onstage, around a dinner table.”
In conclusion, the Jenners’ openness about their plastic surgery is reflective of a broader cultural shift in the way we think about beauty and the human body. As The New York Times reports, this shift is characterized by a blurring of the lines between reality and artificiality, and a growing acceptance of technology as a means of shaping and enhancing the human body. As we move forward in this brave new world, it will be interesting to see how our attitudes towards beauty and the human body continue to evolve.
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