Women: Victim or Victor

We as a society have come to expect some very ridiculous things from the members of the female gender. Women face constant judgment from those around them, whether it's large concerns about their weight, hair, or the way they look in general, or smaller concerns about acne, body hair, or personal hygiene, women are scrutinized almost from the very day we are born. A perfect example of one of these ridiculous conventions forced onto the modern woman is the whole bikini waxing craze. My generation of women, as well as those closely surrounding my generation, are living through a lack of body hair craze. This craze began with the popularity of thongs, as underwear of choice for young women age 8-30. The thong doesn't leave much to the imagination and body hair, unsightly to women in both South and North America began to disappear as more and more women began to wear this revealing and over sexualized form of underwear. What isn't discussed about the waxing craze is that it makes a grown woman's private region appear like that of a pre-pubescent child, a turn to if not all then some men. Grown women are having to make themselves appear like children in order to be found attractive to the more dominant gender. It is a woman's perrogative to make herself attractive, because in our society it is the only way to be valued, truly valued, at least that's what we're taught to think (Our Bodies, Ourselves: 1).

Women in today's society are rarely afforded an actual positive body image representation, and instead turn to the unhealthy, borderline anorexic supermodels as role models for how to be. As a woman, I can attest to the negative effects of the paradigm of the perfect woman. The perfect women is tall, thin, with at least a C cup breast, most likely blond or with light colored hair, not too smart, or dedicated to anything other than finding a successful husband, which is the only way she will find true happiness and triumph. If you do not fit into that category then you are reminded of it on a daily basis. Especially if you're too smart, or show some personal initiative on your own behalf. Let me just tell you, guys don't like it when you're smarter than they are. They are intimidated by a woman with a brain. And not to mention if you have a somewhat unconventional appearance. We live in a country where "self improvement" rarely means building of character, morals, or even manners, but in fact deals with improvement in appearance (Our Bodies, Ourselves: 5). Braces, weight loss drugs, diets, exercise, botox, and elective cosmetic surgery, are only a few of the many ways we have come up with to better ourselves. Education, soul searching, social skills, and personal definition of self have taken a back seat to physical betterment as we are all served up on a platter to the diet, junk food, and advertisement industries respectively.

To love your body is to want improvement, is the mantra of our nation. With anti-aging, crash diets, and virtual starvation in the attempt to stay young, and beautiful, we are sacrificing our moral fiber, not to mention our very health in the attempt fight off the effects of time. It's natural to get older, but it's not natural to want to stay young forever. What ever happened to respect your elders, and the regal, and wisdom that came with growing older and living your life? I'll tell you what, they gave way to anti-wrinkle, no gray, sixty year olds running around looking like they're thirty. Women are instructed to "Stay Young, and Prosper", using the Star Trek phrase, no matter what the cost. Women are the number one supporters of the anti-aging and cosmetic surgery industries, not to mention the diet, junk food, and cosmetic industries that cater to their mental "weaknesses" taught to us from a young age.

This feeds off the uniquely American ideal that with hard work anything is possible. If anything is possible then why would we, as women, limit ourselves, to mere physical beauty? Oh, yeah, because that is what men want for us, for themselves, physical beauty. A woman can be smart as long as she is also young and beautiful. Without the latter two, the first is almost inexcusable. She is shunned from men and society if she is smart, but not young and gorgeous. That is our burden, and it is what we contend with until it changes. It is so deep within us that I do not see it changing anytime soon. Even within women of higher than average intelligence can do nothing but succumb to whim of the "man". This is what those of us educated in the art of women's studies likes to call the patriarchy or the male dominated world in which we live. But to blame the patriarchy is only to point fingers. We are passed the placing of blame and need to find a solution to the ideals perpetuated under this patriarchal regime. I have no suggestions to put this into effect, but only provide the recognition that it needs to take place. Where to start I leave up to the future generation of strong women. I just hope I'll live to see it.

Works Cited

Our Bodies, Ourselves: The Boston Women's Health Book Collective. 2005. 35th Anniversary Ed. Simon & Schuster: New York.