Throughout history, the aesthetic expression of the female body has continuously evolved with the advancement of media technologies. The pursuit of bodily beauty by women is actually a history of the female body being shaped by discourse. In this process, the media, as a significant force, plays a crucial role in constructing the discourse on female bodily beauty. The singular aesthetic realm constructed by mass media and the commodification of the female body under the backdrop of consumer culture have triggered body anxiety among contemporary young women. This paper starts from the perspective of how new consumerism triggers body anxiety among contemporary young women and summarizes the phenomenon of body anxiety characterized by longing for a perfect body, dissatisfaction with one's own body, pathological control over body shape, and self-objectification among women. Further analysis identifies the deep-rooted causes of body anxiety among contemporary young women, including the desire to attract the opposite sex and enhance allure, seeking identity in intimate relationships and social acceptance, discipline and scrutiny from the social environment, assistance from media dissemination and marketing, and the guidance of aesthetic culture and fashionism.

Ba Yi, Junyue Huang. Exploration of the Reasons for Contemporary Young Women's Body Anxiety under the Background of New Consumerism. Academic Journal of Humanities & Social Sciences (2024) Vol. 7, Issue 6: 219-225. https://doi.org/10.25236/AJHSS.2024.070634.

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