Uglies Essay

Words: 915
Pages: 4

Chelsea Dowding-Hopkins
Year 9 – Mrs Graham
INS essay
Uglies by Scott Westerfield
One of the main themes in Scott Westerfield’s text Uglies is the conflict teenagers have with where they stand in society and learning to respect and value themselves. Using examples from the text compare them with today’s world for teenagers.
Word count:
Date Due:

Uglies illustrates many issues that young teenagers will go through in life. The reader has an insight of three main characters and their struggles to fit in to certain societies and others. They are Tally, Shay and David. “Is it not good to make a society full of beautiful people?” (p.1), the first line of the text Uglies foreshadows exactly what the main theme of the book
…show more content…
The programme seems to be an exact replica of one called ‘Photoshop’. ‘Photoshop’ is a programme where any person can change and modify the way they look. They can change their: hair, body shape, eye colour, skin tone and can wipe away any imperfection. Teenagers in today’s society look at these perfect and yet unrealistic faces and compare them to how they look; in all reality we are all full of imperfections. This lowers self confidence and portrays the image of beauty to a standard that no one can achieve, and people wonder why there is such bad body image. Nothing will change until our minds adapt to different perceptions of beauty. Tally seems confused as to why her new, rebellious friend Shay, does not find the game fun. Among other things Shay sees through the game. She understands that there is something morally wrong with the operation and although she does not understand it completely she does not wish to conform and turn herself into unnatural perfection. She is the first character shown to have these thoughts on the operation and is the first insight we get into what is so wrong with it. Shay shows signs of naivety when she runs away. She does not know what kind of danger it may bring and is so eager to please David after not running away with her friends the first time and causes trouble with Tally over such a fickle romance. This is not finished.