Charlotte Sargent

“The Beauty Myth” and “Hair Matters” Response

Both the readings “The Beauty Myth” and “Hair Matters” talk about how prominent beauty is for women in society. The desire and need to look and feel beautiful is what the majority of women deal with all over the world. Women feel pressured by society and mainly men to be attractive and to look beautiful. This causes women to constantly worry about their image and confidence, which makes women feel less powerful and more insecure.

In “The Beauty Myth” by Naomi Wolf, she talks about how women have been fighting for equality for years and in the early 1970’s, Western women gained rights that they never had before. Such as, higher education, entering the work force, and changing the old beliefs and ideas about what their role is in society as women. However, as talked about in Wolf’s article, women do not feel as free as they could, due to the pressure that comes from society to look beautiful. The older women who fought for equality and their rights feel burned out, but the younger women have no motivation to keep making changes. The idea of being beautiful overrides the desire to achieve goals. Women are constantly thinking about their image and that insecurity shows, therefore making women appear inferior.

            The fact that women feel the need to look beautiful instead of independent or powerful is what makes them inferior to men. In some aspects women bring it on upon themselves. As Wolf states “We are in the midst of a violent backlash against feminism that uses images of female beauty as a political weapon against women’s advancement: the beauty myth.” Ten years ago women were violating power and challenging everyone around them, because they had a goal. Overtime, society began to struggle with eating disorders and cosmetic surgery. Wolf talks about how even though women may have more power, money, and choice than ever before, the way women feel and worry about their physical body and their appearance has most likely made us worse off than women years ago, who had no choice.  Women are so conscientious about what they look like, what they wear, and the strive to feel beautiful in the eyes of a man, that they can end up hurting themselves. I feel that women have become weaker, more insecure, and more fragile due to the fact that they are so self-conscious about their appearance, especially to men.

In the reading “Hair Matters” by Ingrid Bank, she talks about hair and power, especially the relationship between the two for black women. In society there are copious amounts of different norms and perceptions of what “looks good” from clothing to hairstyle to accessories, etc. Depending on where you are from, what you look like, and who surrounds you is what makes a person who they are.

Black women have the choice to wear their hair natural or they can straighten it or get braids, etc. I found it interesting how some black women feel more powerful in a sense when they leave their hair natural because that is the way they were born. One of the girls that Bank interviewed said, “In fact, I’m insulted, especially when white people come up to me and say they like my hair because I’ve had to listen to [their] value judgments to create who I am for so long. I don’t want [them] to validate or not validate me.” Others claim they don’t leave their hair natural, but it is not because they are embarrassed or ashamed of their natural hair, it just depends on what makes them feel attractive. Another girl from the reading said, “I think that anyone who loves their self for who they are and doesn’t really care what anyone thinks is powerful.” Some black women like keeping their hair natural because it is going against the grain, which is empowering. However, it can also be empowering to straighten their hair when coming from a family or group that only wears their hair natural, because that is empowering as well. A different interviewee stated “It’s about the choices and your ability to make those choices that brings empowerment.” This shows that the feeling of power can be achieved according to how you make the choices you are presented with and by what your surroundings are.  It is funny to think that a simple bodily feature such as hair has the capability to bring power.

            Straight hair is deemed to be the image of beauty, mainly in the media. This doesn’t mean that just because a black woman straightens her hair, she isn’t a strong woman or proud of her culture. Another woman who was interviewed in the reading said, “I consider myself to be a strong woman. And I’m definitely proud of being black, and that’s why I’m just sort of confused about why I straighten my hair, but I still do it.” I think hairstyle has to do with what makes you feel good, attractive, and confident. In the reading, Bank voiced that long hair is what many men consider to be attractive and feminine. I have always had long hair and I honestly do feel more confident and attractive with long hair. I highly dislike getting my hair cut, because whenever I do, it always seems too short and I feel more insecure. It is interesting that hair length can make me and many others feel that way. For those women who wear their hair short, they are perceived as manly, unfeminine, or lesbian. That is because society has created these norms and when anyone goes against them, they are looked at differently or judged.

            These articles brought into light subtle topics that have a large effect on all women around the world. Small things such as hairstyle and the desire to look beautiful play a huge role in who women are and how women act today in society.