Pale in comparison

We laugh at Snooki and her Jersey Shore posse as they dump three pounds of bronzer on their faces every time they go out. But are we laughing in disgust, or from experience? Honestly, I don't think these girls are much different from many today who would rather die than go pale. Even among those who are less extreme, bronzer is a key piece in most makeup bags and the tanning salon is at the top of most prom (and Ring Dance) to-do lists.

I don't think it's our fault, either. Tan skin is a key component to the American ideal of beauty today and girls are bombarded from all directions with the idea that pale is disgusting. On blogs, girls responded to the question of why tanning is so popular with responses like, "because my skin is blinding, DUH" or "Uh, I'm pasty, EW." But who developed this connection between "pale" and "deformity" and why?

Wikipedia credits the trend to an influence by Coco Chanel and the general shift toward tan skin being associated with healthiness and prosperity. It's strange, though, to think of how much things have changed from when people just started to inch outside the cover of their umbrellas to today where they practically run from them in order to soak up those rays of beauty.

I think we've all seen that old woman at the beach in her neon bathing suit and crispy skin that's hanging from her body. We walk by with a cringe and move on, but it's really kind of scary ... is that our future?

Our obsession with tans becomes even more interesting when we look around and realize how many women from other countries are dying for the opposite. Skin whitening creams are the bronzer-equivalent essential for many women in Africa, India, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and the Philippines. According to BBC, the market in India for whitening creams like "Fair and Lovely" and "White Perfect" -- "Fair and Handsome" for men -- are doing better than the market for Coca-Cola and tea. Coca-Cola, one of the most successful companies in the world, beat out by a cream to whiten the face! This was amazing to me, but when I talked to my friend from Pakistan, he said that his girl friends from home wouldn't dream of hitting a tanning bed. Touche, I guess.

I know the value of pale skin can be traced back to colonial-era mentalities and the privilege of not having the work outdoors. I just wonder why countries like India and Africa, where people tend to have darker skin, preserved these values, while countries like the United States and Ireland, where many people have lighter skin, now strive for the opposite. Do we all just want to be what we're not? Why are our natural complexions contrary to the ideal?

I don't know, and I'm definitely guilty of the prom pilgrimage to Hollywood Tans, so I'm not one to judge. Recently, though, I've decided that keeping up that tan is just too much work and money (not to mention cancer-inducing), so I'm just going to embrace my pallor. Plus, it'll be nice not having to spend three days of beach week recovering from sun poisoning ... again.