Is makeup oppressive?

[Anonymous]

The only reason I feel oppressed is because I have a (female) boss who says to me - quite often - "You look pretty today, what's the matter with you?"

If a male boss said that he'd be (rightfully) accused of harassment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The older I get, the less I care about what "society" is telling me I should or shouldn't be doing. I wear makeup to work or when going out at night for ME. Not because others think I should or because society is telling me I should. I like makeup. Always have. I like the way I look in makeup. On the weekends, however, I don't wear any (again, unless I'm going to out dinner or for drinks).

I wear heels or wedges because I like them. I like they way they make my legs look. I like feeling taller, too. But that doesn't mean I wear them 24/7 or that I feel pressured into wearing them. Ilike flats and sneakers, too.

I also work out because I want to be healthy and strong. Not because society is telling me I need to be a certain size. I like the way I feel after I work out. And yes, it's nice that it keeps the lbs at bay as I get older, but that's not the primary reason I do it.

That's all well and good, but the reason you like the way you look in makeup or the way your legs look in heels is because you have been conditioned to think you look better that way. That's what people mean when they say that "society" tells you you should do it. Nobody shaves their legs or waxes their eyebrows because it's more comfortable--they do it because they've been conditioned for years to accept that this the way women should look.

Of course, working out to feel strong and healthy is wonderful--I think we can all agree on that. But the fact that you even mentioned "keep the lbs at bay" means that you also feel the social pressure not to gain weight as you get older, even though any good doctor would tell you it is normal and even healthy to carry a few more pounds as we age.

Not trying to start a big fight here, but I do think it's worthwhile to continually examine our beauty standards and how they keep women in a constant state of low-level anxiety about their appearance.

Of course not. You're just telling a group of grown women that they cannot possibly have independent thoughts, that society does our thinking for us. You understand that you're sharing the same argument as the trans-vaginal anti-choice men? So... shut up. I look very nice without makeup, but I look amazing with it. And that's my very own thought.

Actually, taking a pause and examining why you follow the beauty routine you do is an exercise in independent thought.

You say this like I have just robotically applied makeup every morning before my husband awakes because the Man told me to, as though I have never questioned anything. I have. And I've arrived at the following: I'm a feminist. I SAH. I'm trying to raise small feminist sons. And I wear makeup. So you can take your faux concern and shove it. Can you really not see what a condescending douche you're being?

Now douching and the "problem" it fixes, smelly vulva and vagina, that I'll totally grant you is not only totally a social construct and a false one. If your junk stinks, jesus, go see a doctor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only reason I feel oppressed is because I have a (female) boss who says to me - quite often - "You look pretty today, what's the matter with you?"

If a male boss said that he'd be (rightfully) accused of harassment.

I wish you good luck in finding a decent human being for a boss.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The older I get, the less I care about what "society" is telling me I should or shouldn't be doing. I wear makeup to work or when going out at night for ME. Not because others think I should or because society is telling me I should. I like makeup. Always have. I like the way I look in makeup. On the weekends, however, I don't wear any (again, unless I'm going to out dinner or for drinks).

I wear heels or wedges because I like them. I like they way they make my legs look. I like feeling taller, too. But that doesn't mean I wear them 24/7 or that I feel pressured into wearing them. Ilike flats and sneakers, too.

I also work out because I want to be healthy and strong. Not because society is telling me I need to be a certain size. I like the way I feel after I work out. And yes, it's nice that it keeps the lbs at bay as I get older, but that's not the primary reason I do it.

That's all well and good, but the reason you like the way you look in makeup or the way your legs look in heels is because you have been conditioned to think you look better that way. That's what people mean when they say that "society" tells you you should do it. Nobody shaves their legs or waxes their eyebrows because it's more comfortable--they do it because they've been conditioned for years to accept that this the way women should look.

Of course, working out to feel strong and healthy is wonderful--I think we can all agree on that. But the fact that you even mentioned "keep the lbs at bay" means that you also feel the social pressure not to gain weight as you get older, even though any good doctor would tell you it is normal and even healthy to carry a few more pounds as we age.

Not trying to start a big fight here, but I do think it's worthwhile to continually examine our beauty standards and how they keep women in a constant state of low-level anxiety about their appearance.

Of course not. You're just telling a group of grown women that they cannot possibly have independent thoughts, that society does our thinking for us. You understand that you're sharing the same argument as the trans-vaginal anti-choice men? So... shut up. I look very nice without makeup, but I look amazing with it. And that's my very own thought.

Actually, taking a pause and examining why you follow the beauty routine you do is an exercise in independent thought.

You say this like I have just robotically applied makeup every morning before my husband awakes because the Man told me to, as though I have never questioned anything. I have. And I've arrived at the following: I'm a feminist. I SAH. I'm trying to raise small feminist sons. And I wear makeup. So you can take your faux concern and shove it. Can you really not see what a condescending douche you're being?

Now douching and the "problem" it fixes, smelly vulva and vagina, that I'll totally grant you is not only totally a social construct and a false one. If your junk stinks, jesus, go see a doctor.

Since you refer to your lady parts as "junk" you clearly see them as negative and you are part of the oppressive problem!!

[Anonymous]

By the way, there are more than one of us playing devil's advocate in here. Full disclosure, I dye my gray hair and wear some makeup, so I am a conformist at best. But seriously, anyone who can't see that women are wasting tons of time and money on completely manufactured problems like uneven skin tone, visible panty lines, thigh gap, flyaways, "fine lines", etc. is not being honest. The beauty and weight-loss "industries" are just that, businesses that profit from our anxieties about the way we look. And lashing out about someone who has armpit hair really makes you look superficial. I mean, what happened to being oneself and making your own decisions? That was fine for the woman who felt great putting on lots of makeup and wearing high heels.

[Anonymous]

I don't wear makeup, I don't shave, and I dress for comfort within my (primarily casual) professional constraints. I am clean, neat, and if anybody is offended by my armpit hair or lack of style, that is on them. I am very happy with the limited amount of money, time, energy, and brainpower that I put into this area of my life.

I do feel that societal pressures about beauty and fashion are problematic. I'm glad that other women do what makes them feel good about themselves (as do I), but I dislike the industries that play on anxieties and manufactured problems, as a previous poster said, or things that can cause health problems or pain, like the expectation to wear heels.

[Anonymous]

On a macro sense, yes (if you can even call it "macro" when talking about something this minor, but I guess I mean as part of a general historical double standard of the dreaded patriarchy).
On a micro level, every day, on a single person, your call, but I'm inclined to say there are bigger hills to die on. Certainly we all are conditioned to think makeup makes us prettier, but its hardly a crime to actually WANT to look that way, or be entirely indifferent to it, instead of spending your precious little time here fighting it.

JMO

[Anonymous]

I love makeup. I used to work as a makeup artist. I think men look better in makeup. My favorite show is RuPaul's drag race. I think everyone looks more festive in makeup, but I'd never force anyone to wear it or think less of them for not loving it the way that I do. I'm a stone cold feminist.

At one time I was required to wear makeup (because I worked for a makeup company), but I was more oppressed by having to wear their boring colors.

[Anonymous]

Well, I do find it oppressive. Not in the Saudi Arabian sense, but in the sense that if I don't wear makeup, literally everyone I see that day that i know will 1) tell me I look tired, 2) ask me if I'm sick.

The other day I wasn't wearing makeup and a colleague told me I looked "very stressed." I wasn't.

I really like makeup, but i resent having to put it on. I have naturally dark circles under my eyes, I AM NOT TIRED.

[Anonymous]

I think the very idea that our real natural skin and face is not beautiful or something to be concealed and ashamed of is unbelievably horrible!

This industry has done quite a number on us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is makeup another tool for oppressing women?

Think about it. Common knowledge says that women's natural skin and features are not good enough to be presented in society. Thus, she must cover, conceal,enhance and beautify her face.

There are women who genuinely believe that makeup is a choice and they do it "for themselves."

Well,

Sorry you have such an inferiority complex about your look, OP. An hour with a beauty consultant at Nordstrom could do a lot for you.

[Anonymous]

Makeup is fun. That's all.

[Anonymous]

You think women are oppressed by wearing makeup?

Try being a female peacock. Those male bastards strutting their glorious tail feathers just to get some. Oppressive bird assholes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Makeup is fun. That's all.

Except that it isn't all, because women who choose not to wear makeup are penalized for that choice by society.

[Anonymous]

Make-up doesn't necessarily mean that a woman is trying to cover up her face. (Unless she wears a ton of it like a clown!)

Make-up simply when done correctly, enhances one's own natural beauty.
It shows other people that you care about your physical appearance so much that you are willing to take the extra time and effort to be your best.

And in the professional world, a woman made up looks pretty + polished.