Once again, a famous woman has become the subject of critique based on impossible beauty standards, but this time, people have jumped to her defense.
Following a picture uploaded by British Vogue on Sunday (November 12) of Kate Middleton from Remembrance Sunday, heartless trolls started flooding Instagram’s comment section with adverse reactions.
According to the publication, which shared a headshot of the princess dressed in black and keeping a very serious gaze, Kate had joined Queen Camilla on a balcony overlooking London’s Cenotaph, which symbolizes the unprecedented losses suffered during the First World War.
Kate Middleton received negative reactions after a headshot of her on Remembrance Sunday was published on British Vogue's Instagram
Image credits: Samir Hussein/Getty Images
The princess of Wales decorated her black robe with a silver brooch, which she was awarded when she became Commodore-in-Chief of the Fleet Air Arm earlier this year, Vogue reported.
To most, the 41-year-old mom-of-three exhibited class and appropriate demeanor, considering the event's seriousness.
Nevertheless, some people thought her photograph was unflattering, pointing out that she looked much older than her actual age.
Image credits: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images
“My gosh, she looks like she's about to turn 60! The actress Bianca Lawson is older than her at 44 and could easily pass as a hot 25-year-old,” a shocked Instagram user commented.
“40 is not that old. This is obviously stress showing on her face,” another person wrote.
A third commentator chimed in: “I like her, but this girl is not happy and it is obvious.
“At the age of 40 with such care & possibilities, she really does not look good.
“Something is going wrong in that family.
“Mother of 3 with an army of nannies and cooks and maids should not look that tired and sad.
“Sorry for her.”
“Looks so old and angry,” an individual wrote.
A separate Instagram user added: “I’m 41 and I don’t look as old and tired as she looks.
“Neither does Megan Markle.
“People age differently, but ugly hearts and cold decisions usually make their marks pretty apparent.”
“Something is going wrong in that family," a troll wrote on Instagram
Image credits: princeandprincessofwales
Nonetheless, some fans emphasized Kate was displaying some faint signs of aging like a normal human being.
“To all the people saying ‘I’m 45 and I look better than that’, I’m 30 and I look worse - some of us have just been tired for a long time and it shows, criticize the monarchy all you like for their actions but can we leave her alone for not being ageless/made of plastic,” a person defended.
An Instagram user pointed at the sexist attitudes: “If this was a man her age, no one would be commenting on how ‘old’ he looks, gosh I hate it here.”
Someone wrote: “Every time a woman over 40 is posted here, everyone moans about them looking old or ugly.
“This is what women look like.
“The age they are supposed to look without ridiculous procedures and filters.
“Stop adding to the problem.”
Another person penned: “So many ‘she's not aging well,’ ‘oh my gosh she looks terrible, comments’ because everybody's so used to all these celebrities having so much work done on their faces that natural aging doesn't look right.”
Many people defended the Princess of Wales, arguing that aging should be normalized
Image credits: princeandprincessofwales
In an opinion piece published by Marie Claire, in response to the backlash emerging from Kate’s recent headshot, the author condemned the comments “around the Princess of Wales' appearance” as it “proves tweakments have moved beyond the reals of being normalized, and that actually, they're now expected.”
The author further questioned: “If our society is willing to pick apart someone like Kate Middleton, who is as objectively close to Western beauty ideals as you can get, what does that mean for the future of beauty standards?”
She continued: “And what message does it send to women everywhere, who are constantly being told that aging 'gracefully' should be embraced, but only if you look young while you do it?
“The ageist narrative around Kate Middleton right now is more than just problematic, it's downright scary, and there should be no place for it in 2023.
“We simply cannot afford to lose natural aging as a standard of beauty.”
Critics judged Kate's appearances online
A study published by the Harvard Business Review revealed that women in leadership suffer from constant age bias, facing ageism at every age.
According to the research, as women age, they are often not seen as valuable or relevant in the way that their male counterparts are.
Additionally, “while men become wells of wisdom as they age, older women are seen as outdated, harpy, strident.”
Meanwhile, younger women often experience getting called pet names or even patted on the head, as they regularly suffer from role incredulity.
Women in the study reported being mistaken for students, interns, trainees, support staff, secretaries, paralegals, and court reporters.
While some people weren't too kind to Kate's recent photos, others stood up for her
