The Swan

Earlier this year, FOX released a new, ambitious reality TV show that examined the parameters of modern beauty. Named The Swan, this reality TV hit combined the common reality TV premise of examining the transformative power of plastic surgery on a patient's life with the spectacle of a beauty pageant.

A show that empowered its contestants to take control over their lives by providing them with the necessary changes that the contestants felt that they needed, The Swan is a landmark reality TV show. Taking its title from the childhood parable in which an ugly duckling transforms into a beautiful swan, The Swan provided its contestants with a remarkable opportunity. Rather than just provide plastic surgery to the contestants, The Swan made each contestant undergo a vigorous boot camp designed to inspire them to reach their goals.

Each contestant was tended to by a team of experts that gave lessons regarding the importance of exercise and a good diet, important lessons to have if one wants to have a happy life. On top of this, this team of experts provided contestants with a therapist whose goal was to give contestants the mental strength needed to be happy in life. This is an extremely important trait that The Swan emphasized, as many people know that it's possible to beautiful on the outside while being ugly on the inside.

By adding the extra twist of a beauty pageant near the end, The Swan was able to use the drive and strength of specific contestants by rewarding these contestants with admission to this beauty pageant. Each week, television viewers were able to forge an emotional connection with these contestants, as they began to make remarkably positive changes on their lives from a physical and mental perspective.

Although The Swan was only able to reward one winner in its beauty pageant, it was able to transform the lives of all of its contestants for the better. By showing how much change that plastic surgery can have on a person's sense of self, The Swan shows that with modern technology, there's no point in being inactive if you feel that a change in your looks will help you emotionally.