Could I ignore it? I tried very hard, but it was VERY difficult not to jump on the sarcy Samantha Brick bandwaggon.
Those of you who don't know who she is- FEEL ASHAMED. SHE'S ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND MOST MISUNDERSTOOD WOMEN, EVER.
Alright, I'm being a bitch. I will let you make your own mind up. Here's her Daily Mail interview:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2124246/Samantha-Brick-downsides-looking-pretty-Why-women-hate-beautiful.html
Here are a couple of quotes from the interview, interspersed with some funny tweets I have come across:
Samantha Bricks: "...I was walking through London’s Portobello Road market, I was tapped on the shoulder and presented with a beautiful bunch of flowers. Even bar tenders frequently shoo my credit card away when I try to settle my bill.
And whenever I’ve asked what I’ve done to deserve such treatment, the donors of these gifts have always said the same thing: my pleasing appearance and pretty smile made their day."
boothby graffoe @boobygraffoe
"I’ve heard of “beer-goggles”. Samantha Brick would appear to possess a “beer-mirror”."
Samantha Bricks: "...it is not just jealous wives who have frozen me out of their lives. Insecure female bosses have also barred me from promotions at work.
And most poignantly of all, not one girlfriend has ever asked me to be her bridesmaid."
Periwinkle Jones @peachesanscream
"10 RTs and I'll ask Samantha Brick to be my bridesmaid #brickingit"
Russ Powell @russjokes
"An anagram of Samantha Brick is: 'Hint. A crab mask' #samanthabrick"
Now, the article does scream narcissism, but how much do you agree with her?
Like, I guess beautiful people might be stigmatised for their looks. I don't think Samantha Brick did come across well (to be polite) in her interview (how much of that was down to harsh journalistic editing, I will let you make up your own mind), but she might have a point...
Girls are notoriously jealous of other girls. Not all girls are this way, but it is a reccuring theme. So, if a woman is particularly attractive, she is more likely to be subjected to bitchy comments from 'haters', who are actually just jealous. Subsequently, these 'haters' might not extend the hand of friendship and ergo, the beautiful girl in question is stigmatised.
I have seen this happen before within my own friendship groups. I have a very good friend who is one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen- but she's also, one of the most insecure people I have ever met. Her insecurities stem from the fact that other girls are HORRID to her. She once told a girl in the toilet of a bar that she liked her top, and the girl turned around and said to her, verbatim, "Wow, I thought by looking at you that you were a bitch, but you're actually quite nice!". And she automatically assumes that the only reason other girls are this way towards her is because she is a horrible person. It kills me.
Another of my very best friends was forced out of her friendship group by a few girls, for absolutely no valid reason whatsoever. And I can see that it was just because she is by far the most attractive girl in that group. Jealousy really IS a burden- as they now have missed out on her friendship, because they would rather ostracise her and justify their actions by saying that SHE'S the bitch, when in fact, it's all because they're just shallow, superficial douche bags. Worked out fine for me though, as now she is my friend, and I couldn't be any happier about that, or any more proud of her for being the person she is today.
So, yes, I probably do agree with SB on what she says about other women- they can be horrible. But this can be put down to their own insecurities, and so, I think in the end, you have to just feel sorry for them, ditch them, and get over it. A notion which is supported by Psychiatrist Dr. Gail Saltz who suggested that jealousy may also arise due to personal insecurities and poor self-esteem.
This does seem to contradict evidence on the Halo Effect from a study conducted by Dion and Berscheid (1972), however. Their study, in a nutshell, used 60 participants who were shown pictures of different people at different levels of attractiveness. The participants were asked to rate these people on what different personality traits and lifestyles they thought they would be most likely to possess. The findings showed that people rated the more attractive people as likely to have secure, prestigious and high paid jobs, live happier lives, have a happier marriage, be better parents, and have more of a fulfillment of life than the unattractive individual.
Perhaps this shows the real feelings people have about attractive people, until jealousy gets in the way...
Evidence from psychology professors for the American Psychological Association in 2010- showed that that jealousy can affect women’s ability to see clearly. During an experiment whereby women were informed their partners were going to judge the attractiveness of other women, and the results showed that it impeded their own reactions to spot visual targets on a computer screen. Steven Most and Jean-Philippe Laurenceau showed that “the influence of social emotions—known to affect moods, behaviors and physical health—appears to permeate so deeply as to affect processes involved in visual awareness.”
When it comes to male attention though, Samantha Brick does seem to get more than her fair share...
Now, in my experience, the hottest girls don't ever get hit on. I genuinely think that men are often intimidated by the beautiful girls, and so, they are often the ones left behind when it comes to male attention. This obviously isn't the case for Samantha Brick! However, I think that when a girl is genuinely beautiful, she is likely to be quite insecure as well- maybe because of the reaction from other women. The most beautiful girls I know, seem to lack a lot of confidence, and instead of putting themselves out there to men- actually shy away from being noticed.
This obviously contradicts the way Samantha Brick is treated- and quite frankly, what would I know?! I've got a good job with career prospects, I have a female boss who is nice to me, I have a boyfriend, I have female friends and I have two sisters who I get on with really well- I must be VERY mediocre looking.
I know that generally it would seem that better looking people have a better deal in life, and I have to say that to some extent, I do agree with that. But I do also think that whilst beauty can open a lot of doors, it can also be a hinderance in other ways.
Regardless, I think it's funny that Brick has come off a massive prick ;). I think her slating on Twitter was a bit much, but then, we only really have a place for self-depricating humour these days- no one has time to hear how good you think you are, especially when you follow it up with a moan of how awful it is for you that you are so excellent.
To finish, here are two HILARIOUS features which have popped up as a result. I think you'll really like them! Enjoy...
1. Vice
2. Huffington Post
One thing's for certain, she's certainly going to make some money from this. It's not all awful, is it, Samantha Brick?!
L.
