Have you considered that people wear makeup because they want to / enjoy it, and not just to align with what others might see as attractive? When I wear makeup I like to experiment with different looks and take my time because it’s an act of self care and expression.
Kind of disappointed in the number of comrades ITT who have the patriarchal “natural beauty is better” brainworms tbh
Yes, obviously. I do not expect women to do their entire routine to impress men whose sexual attention they are probably already not wanting more of. Makeup is fun for many people, just as any other art or form of self expression is.
I prefer the look of less makeup and more casual dress in general. This does not have to be everyone’s preference, nor is mine superior, nor do I have any expectation of women to appease my preference. Should have been more explicit about that.
Regardless, it is very clear that beauty standards have a pretty severe impact on people’s mental wellbeing. Not everyone doing extravagant makeup is doing so to cover insecurity. In fact, most probably aren’t, but capitalism is constantly pumping out media that drives these insecurities in order to push products.
I briefly dated a girl who refused to be seen in public without makeup because she saw herself as ugly without it. She couldn’t even run errands without doing a whole ass routine. When I would try to reassure her that I thought she was beautiful without makeup, she would call me a liar. I couldn’t help but feel like our society has done her (and women and everyone at large) a terrible disservice.
Just like for every alcoholic there are a half dozen people who responsibly enjoy drinking, a majority of people enjoy doing themselves up for reasons unrelated to the male gaze, while a subset of others see these unrealistic beauty standards and hate their appearance for seemingly not living up to it.
The cosmetic industry has blood on its hands, and it isn’t simply benign fun for everyone.
Of course beauty standards can be incredibly damaging, but you or a subset of men or society saying “I prefer a different/less makeup based standard” isn’t helping to dissolve the damage, it just reinforces the existence of standards. It can also shame people, including unintentionally, for wearing makeup in the first place. It’s a lose/lose situation for us. We get told to look a certain way and then told “I prefer it actually when you look a different way”.
The better way to dissolve the power of the standards set by our capitalist society and cosmetic industry is to reorient the conversation about beauty away from standards of any kind and towards personal expression.
Have you considered that people wear makeup because they want to / enjoy it, and not just to align with what others might see as attractive? When I wear makeup I like to experiment with different looks and take my time because it’s an act of self care and expression.
Kind of disappointed in the number of comrades ITT who have the patriarchal “natural beauty is better” brainworms tbh
Yes, obviously. I do not expect women to do their entire routine to impress men whose sexual attention they are probably already not wanting more of. Makeup is fun for many people, just as any other art or form of self expression is.
I prefer the look of less makeup and more casual dress in general. This does not have to be everyone’s preference, nor is mine superior, nor do I have any expectation of women to appease my preference. Should have been more explicit about that.
Regardless, it is very clear that beauty standards have a pretty severe impact on people’s mental wellbeing. Not everyone doing extravagant makeup is doing so to cover insecurity. In fact, most probably aren’t, but capitalism is constantly pumping out media that drives these insecurities in order to push products.
I briefly dated a girl who refused to be seen in public without makeup because she saw herself as ugly without it. She couldn’t even run errands without doing a whole ass routine. When I would try to reassure her that I thought she was beautiful without makeup, she would call me a liar. I couldn’t help but feel like our society has done her (and women and everyone at large) a terrible disservice.
Just like for every alcoholic there are a half dozen people who responsibly enjoy drinking, a majority of people enjoy doing themselves up for reasons unrelated to the male gaze, while a subset of others see these unrealistic beauty standards and hate their appearance for seemingly not living up to it.
The cosmetic industry has blood on its hands, and it isn’t simply benign fun for everyone.
Of course beauty standards can be incredibly damaging, but you or a subset of men or society saying “I prefer a different/less makeup based standard” isn’t helping to dissolve the damage, it just reinforces the existence of standards. It can also shame people, including unintentionally, for wearing makeup in the first place. It’s a lose/lose situation for us. We get told to look a certain way and then told “I prefer it actually when you look a different way”.
The better way to dissolve the power of the standards set by our capitalist society and cosmetic industry is to reorient the conversation about beauty away from standards of any kind and towards personal expression.
Hmm I see what you are saying. Interesting perspective I didn’t consider. I will reflect on that. Thank you!
Thank you for listening