Pretty Hurts- Beyonce

                         
                    [Verse 1]:
         Mama said, "You're a pretty girl.
What's in your head , it doesn't matter
      Brush your hair, fix your teeth
What you wear is all that matters."

                         [Pre-Hook]:
Just another stage, pageant the pain away
  This time I'm gonna take the crown
  Without falling down, down, down

                         [Hook]:
  Pretty hurts, we shine the light on whatever's worst
Perfection is a disease of a nation, pretty hurts, pretty hurts
   Pretty hurts, we shine the light on whatever's worst
We try to fix something but you can't fix what you can't see
        It's the soul that needs the surgery

                         [Verse 2]:
        Blonder hair, flat chest
    TV says, "Bigger is better."
        South beach, sugar free
    Vogue says, "Thinner is better."
 
                        [Pre-Hook]

                        [Hook]

                         [Bridge]:
    Ain't got no doctor or pill that can take the pain away
The pain's inside and nobody frees you from your body
      It's the soul, it's the soul that needs the surgery
                 It's my soul that needs the surgery
   Plastic smiles and denial can only take you so far
Then you break when the face façade leaves you in the dark
  You left with shattered mirrors and the shards of a beautiful past

                            [Hook]

                            [Outro]:
When you're alone all by yourself (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)
And you're lying in your bed (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)
Reflection stares right into you (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)
Are you happy with youself? (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)
You stripped away the masquerade (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)
The illusion has been shed (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)
Are you happy with yourself? (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)
Are you happy with yourself? (pretty hurts, pretty hurts)

   This song has such a strong affect on anyone, whether it be a male or female, who my listen to this song. Beyoncé wrote this song to show how much of an affect being "pretty" can physically and emotionally hurt someone.  Young adults are going "under the knife", sticking their fingers down their throats, so that they may uphold the image that is recognized as pretty.

   The repetition of the phrase "pretty hurts" that is expressed both throughout the song and especially in the Outro shows how much being "pretty" hurts.  In the Outro Beyoncé gives a question, asking "are you happy with yourself?", as she encourages, "you stripped away the masquerade". Are people going to be happy when they just learn to be themselves and not follow what the media says is "pretty".

   The music video helps present a visual aid to help those see exactly what people go through. Beyoncé presents an allusion of a beauty pageant, which is a great example of where self image is not appreciated by the contestants.

Beyoncé compares the smiles that people have permanently placed on their faces so that no one will know what they are really going through, as a "face façade". "The illusion has been shed", the illusion that one previews for the world should be deleted from their character and they should embrace their true personality and beauty.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXXQLa-5n5w