Cheyanne Hotchkiss

Eng 102
Salyers
19 October 2015

Is Plastic Surgery Accepted in Todays Society?

Plastic surgery is a wide range of surgical procedures that most would commonly
associate with bettering ones appearance. However, plastic surgery is much more than that. Most
surgical procedures that are performed in which are classified as plastic surgery are actually
reconstruction and repair of ones abnormalities from defects of birth or illness/disease. One of
the first recorded procedures is a rhinoplasty dated somewhere between 1500 B.C. and 2000 B.C.
( PEANAC,200). The informal definition of a rhinoplasty is a nose job. During that time
period in India, the legal punishment was cutting of the nose. This is how the birth of rhinoplasty
came about, to reconstruct the nose after the cutting. The evolution of plastic surgery was slow
during the Middle Ages due to technology and because the church basically ruled the world. It
was considered of the devil to dabble in science and medicine. However, since the New Age,
or the Renaissance, plastic surgery has developed and advanced immensely, especially in the
modern era. Because of the advancement in technology, plastic surgery is now acceptable in
todays society.
Contrary to popular belief, plastic surgery is not just used to enhance the way a person
looks. Respondents were asked what they considered to be plastic surgery. A significant
percentage of the respondents did not know that the following procedures are classified as plastic
surgery: replant amputated finger, correction of prominent ears, repair of cleft lip, repair of
tendon in hand, excision of skin cancer, and blepharoplasty (De Blacam, 199). On average,
approximately 35% of the respondents were unsure about the aforementioned procedures being

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classified as plastic surgery (De Blacam). Even though plastic surgery has more uses than simply
making someone feel better about the way they look, when asked about the importance of plastic
surgery, plastic surgery was ranked 30th out of the 30 different selected specialties in medicine
(De Blacam).
Although plastic surgery is capable of bettering ones appearance, it also helps with
certain medical issues. Examples of this are as follows: cleft lip, gynecomastia, skin grafts, scar
revision, and many others. One good illustration of this point can be found in the case of young
males in India. Young males as young as 13 years old are getting gynecomastia, which is a breast
reduction to reduce moderate to severe enlargement of breasts (Singh, 59). This procedure
helps the young males to deal with psychological issues that can result from outdoor sports,
swimming, chasing their dress to very loose-fitting clothes to hide their embarrassment, being
teased and bullied in school (Singh, 59). Another common procedure performed has to do with
reducing acne scars that could be disfiguring (Singh, 59). These procedures help them to deal
with psychological issues that could bring on mental illness in the future, inhibiting their quality
of life.
The advances in technology have allowed plastic surgeons to enhance not just physical
appearance but how the world views the stigma associated with having plastic surgery. Plastic
surgeons are healers of both body and mind. They not only fix the outside issue; by dealing with
the outer imperfection or dilemma, they allow for the inner self to heal.

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Works Cited
PEANAC, Marija . "Development Of Plastic Surgery." Medicinski Pregled / Medical Review
68.5/6 (2015): 199-204. Academic Search Complete. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
De Blacam, Catherine, et al. "Public Perception Of Plastic Surgery." Journal Of Plastic,
Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgery 2 (2015): 197. Academic OneFile. Web. 21 Sept.
2015.
Kuldeep, Singh. "Cosmetic Surgery In Teenagers: To Do Or Not To Do." Journal Of Cutaneous
& Aesthetic Surgery 8.1 (2015): 57-59. Academic Search Complete. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.