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Volume3 Issue2
I
ssues and
P
eople
that idealizedmodernity, suburbanism, andnormalcy, this
meant visiting thedentist twiceyearlyandmaking sure their
childrenhad thebest possibleupbringing,whichagain
meant having little-to-nooral diseaseandbraces.
Atonepointyou trace therisingpreoccupation
of straight,white teeth tohelpingmake
drafteesofWWIIfit forservice–canyou
elaborate?
CQ:
Iwouldn’t say that straight,white teethwere linked to
military recruits, butmore so that, in recruits, government
recognized thepoor oral healthof its citizens, hence the
need tomake investments in this area.Weneededhealthy
soldiers, andultimately, healthycitizens toachieveour goals
as anation state.
AK:
At the timeofWWII, theoral healthof drafteeswas so
poor that they failed to fulfill thedental requirements for
induction. Oneout of fourmenwere reportedly rejected
for not having two functional opposing teeth. The rejection
ratedue topoor oral healthwas sohigh that itwouldhave
jeopardizedmilitaryconscriptionneeds. Thus, thedental
requirements for inductionhad tobe removedand the
armed forcesDental Corpswas in turn strengthened to
providedental treatment to servicemen.
Organizeddentistry sawanopportunityand launcheda
successful campaign that not onlyencourageddentists to
provide freedental care todraftees, but alsohelpeda large
number of dentists enter thearmed services at the same
rankasphysicians. Thousandsof dentists, particularly recent
graduates joined tohelpdrafteesbecomedentallyfit forwar
service.Meanwhile, business at home for older dentists also
started toflourish.
Inyourarticleyoudrawuponstudies thatshow
clearbiases inourculture tostraight,white teeth
(i.e., for jobs,overall success,etc.),yetother
cultures(Japanese,British)prefermore ‘natural’
teeth.Why is thisso?
AK:
Equating straight,white teethwithbeauty, youthor
social success is ahistoricandcultural construct specific
toNorthAmerica. It isnot auniversal beauty ideal. Every
culturehas itsown idealsof beauty. For instance, dental
offices in Japanoffer services thatmodify teeth to look like
Yaeba, commonly knownas “snaggletooth” in thispart
of theworld, since that iswhat is consideredattractiveand
youthful there. TheBritishprefer natural teethover the
“American” pearlywhitesbecauseavastmajorityconsiders
thisobsessionas artificial andvain. Inone sense, they
aremore inclined towards functionality rather than
aesthetics.
Whatpartdoessexualattractivenessplaywithour
preoccupationwith teeth?
CQ:
At itsbiological roots, it is a signof geneticfitness, and
at its social roots, it is a signof social andeconomicfitness.
AK:
Sexual attractivenesshas an important bearingonour
preoccupationwith teeth. Teeth tend toget darker andmore
yellowwithadvancingage; therefore,whiter teethadd to
youthfulness andbeauty. The influenceof dental appearance
onperceptionsof attractivenesshasbeen found tobemore
pronouncedwhen individuals areappraisedby theopposite
sex. A “perfect” smile is tohumans asbright plumage is
tobirds. Furthermore, fromanevolutionaryperspective,
symmetryand secondary sexual characteristicshave
significant impact onperceptionsof attractiveness.
Howdifficultwould itbe foran individual to
“buck” thesocietal idealof straight,white teeth?
Whatwouldbe thepotentialconsequences?
AK:
Thepresenceofmedia representations creates
tremendouspressureon individuals toconform to societal
ideals. Aperfect set of teethhasbecomealmost an
obsession inNorthAmerica. Andalthough it certainly isnot
trueeverywhere inNorthAmerica, it cannot bedenied that
thishasbecomeaperceivednorm, a standardof beauty. Pick
upamagazineor flip throughTVchannels, andeverywhere
you look is that “Hollywood smile”.With this endorsement
comes societal pressure,which leads to smiledissatisfaction.
Thus, understandably so, individualswithadental
appearance that doesnot conform to the ideal imposedby
thedominant social andmarket cultureareat riskof facing
negative social judgment. TheNorthAmericandiscourseon
individual responsibility further contributes to stigmatization
of individuals that deviate from this ideal. Ina societywhere
lookingflawless is consideredequivalent to social success, it
mayalsoput thosewith “bad” teethat adisadvantagewith
regards toemployment opportunities, andunfortunately,
these samepeople tend toexperience reducedaccess to
dental care.
CQ:
I don’t think youcannecessarily ‘buck’ the ideal if
by that youmean rejecting it. I think somehavebeen
creativeand internalized it as their own, as isdone in
hip-hop, for example, throughgrills andother formsof
dentalmodification. I alsodon’t think individualswouldbe
interested inhavingcrooked, broken-downand stained
teethas a signof resistance. Theconsequencesof thatwould
be social rejection, andeven themost ardent resistorsof the
westernworld still privilege their health, i.e., being freeof
painand infection.
a
Reprintedwithpermission fromErinVollick, CommunicationsOfficer, FacultyofDentistry, University
of Toronto.
