Let’s face it: people judge others based on their appearance
constantly. I do it. I know that you do it, no matter how high and mighty you
may try to have me think you are. People are programmed to judge others as a
means of self-preservation: I have this perception of you, thus I will treat
you in this way. It’s an adaptation we’ve developed in order to navigate social
situations.
The physical signals a person gives off, are the most
significant contributors to how we formulate a first impression. For example, when
we see someone who hasn’t washed their hair in three days we think, ‘Wow,
that guy has poor hygiene.’ If a co-worker wears sweatpants to the office we
think, ‘She obviously doesn’t take her job very seriously.’ When we see someone
covered in tattoos or with a brand emblazoned across her/his chest or dressed
in clothing that hasn’t been in style for decades, we associate these people
with certain stereotypes and preconceived notions that society has spelled out
for us through years of social conditioning and popular imagery.
We judge people, and it’s a fact, and yet rather than
attempting to engage with a dialogue about why we judge each other, we
come up with public displays of ‘acceptance’ in a bravura performance of
self-confidence which – rather than combating the issue at hand: feminine
insecurity as spurred on by the beauty industry – enforces women in identifying
their worth through physical appearance by focusing on this aspect of self.
My point of view on this subject may come as a shock to some
who know that I am a die-hard feminist with massive opinions about female
sexuality, identity, and choice. However, I also have a tiny shopping addiction,
and I firmly believe that one of the most interesting ways of expressing
oneself is through fashion and makeup. I whole-heartedly support Coco Chanel’s
affirmation that ‘There are no ugly [people] in the world, just lazy ones,’ and
you can sour grapes at me all you want, but I know from first-hand experience that
it does not take much effort to look good and thus feel capital-G great.
Not that I don’t believe that women who don’t wear makeup
are not beautiful. Just the contrary! A woman who is confident while
makeup-free is just as elegant and beautiful as a woman with a fully done face.
My problem with the ‘no makeup selfie’ is that it implies the need for a
dichotomy between ‘insecure makeup wearers’ and ‘confident non-makeup wearers’. There shouldn’t have to be a black-and-white distinction, an issue which arises
over and over in feminist discourse.
Just as feminism does not meant that women
want to be men, so it also means that a woman should not be defined by how much
or how little makeup she wears. Feminism is about choice, and by ‘nominating’
me to take a makeup-free photo the element of choice has been removed and
replaced by an unreal expectation that a woman is not a ‘real woman’ unless she
shuns the traditional physical trappings of femininity. Feminism means I have
the freedom to choose to wear makeup or to choose not to – not that I have to
conform one way or the other.
That being said, my personal preference is and always will
be to wear makeup. I grew up with a mother who knew a lot about applying to
makeup and taught me that it is a tool to enhance your natural beauty rather
than a way to cover up flaws. Through her guidance I learned that wearing
makeup can be fun rather than being a chore or making me a slave to the beauty
industry. I embrace makeup with enjoyment as it allows me to put forward the
face of whoever I feel like being that day, whether she is dark and mysterious
or light and playful. Makeup is useful as a tool to enhance my personality. Makeup
has never been a proverbial weight on my shoulders (or a literal one on my
face), but has been a way for me to feel liberated from appearing the same as
everyone else when I always felt a tiny bit different.
I now wear makeup daily. I don’t do it because I am fearful
of people seeing ‘the real me’ or because I am terribly insecure about the way
I look. I wear makeup because I feel great when I wear makeup: confident and in
control of my appearance. I wear makeup because it allows me to draw attention
to my most positive features – the long, thick eyelashes that frame my green
eyes, the plump apples of my cheeks, a pair of full lips paired with straight
white teeth – rather than focusing on my crooked nose or the many acne spots on
my cheeks and chin caused by stress. I want people to see the best of me, on my
own terms.
To quote Stacy London (ie. the woman who taught me most of
what I know about fashion), ‘Not one person I know isn’t concerned with their appearance.
To trivialise fashion is to rob ourselves of a great tool.’ What Stacy so
wisely implores us to do is to not be slaves to fashion or to the beauty
industry or to unrealistic portrayals of ‘natural’ beauty in the media. What
she is saying is that we should realise that we deserve to feel great, and a
big part of feeling great is knowing that the face you are putting forwards is
your best one and one that the world will have no choice but to greet
positively.
Makeup can contribute a lot to that feeling or it may not
have any bearing on how you feel at all, and that’s wonderful! But don’t feel
like you are better than someone because you took one photo of yourself without
makeup. The problem is not the makeup. The problem is that we continue to focus
on shallow physical elements of femininity rather than allowing our external selves to reflect the
unique beauty that lies within each woman.
So rather than saying ‘Thank you for nominating me!’, I am
saying ‘Thanks but no thanks.’ I like makeup. I like the way it makes me look
and the way it makes me feel, and I am going to keep on wearing makeup when I
want to rather than bowing to the pressure to conform to yet another
misinterpretation of feminist ideology.
CURRENTLY READING: The Sisters Brothers by Patrick de Witt
