The Beauty Myth in The 21st Century

“A culture fixated on female thinness is not an obsession about female beauty, but an obsession about female obedience. Dieting is the most potent political sedative in women’s history; a quietly mad population is a tractable one.” - The Beauty Myth, Naomi Wolf

The Beauty Myth is a book written by Naomi Wolf in 1990. 26 years on, how potent is the feminist message it brings and how relevant is it to women in 2016?

Ok so, this is a little different. I love beauty. Of course I do. Why else would I have a blog dedicated to it? Why else would I spend hours on fashionising.com and Vogue beauty? Why would all my money go to Spectrum, NYX, Eyeko and every cruelty free skin care brand I can get my hands on? But as the cliché goes, I do it for me.

Do we do it for ourselves?

Yes: I'm pretty sure my boyfriend could do without me covering him in glitter every time I see him just by hugging him.

No: I'm pretty sure I'd feel out of place if I was around a woman beautifully contoured whilst I sit looking like a bare faced potato.

The importance of Wolf's message is felt in the second feeling. She clearly shows that though women are held back by a man's fear of a strong woman and a need to keep obedience in check, women hold back women.

Fast forward to 2016 and there seems to be two different classes on this thought. Women who genuinely want to help and enhance other women (look at Cosmo, Vogue, Elle... yes they do give tips for dieting etc. BUT they also show the importance of loving your body, doing things for yourself and this is something which is completely different from when Wolf wrote The Beauty Myth). Women have begun to understand that you can appreciate other women and to not judge them for their weight, appearance or visible roots showing. Let's face it, who gives a shit?

There is another group though. The elite non-makeup wearers. Of course, nothing is wrong with not wearing makeup. I love a good no-makeup day and women do look beautiful without the need of covering their faces. But just because a woman likes to wear a lot of makeup does not make her a lesser woman for it. She is neither better nor worse.

Obedience is no longer found in women focusing solely on makeup or diets, we are not distracted by it. We can do both. Wear warpaint and go to battle. It does not make you weaker. It does not make you more obedient

"One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman" - The Second Sex, Simone De Beauvoir

The kind of woman you chose to become is up to you. Wolf leaves her reader with this sentiment as Beauvoir does but we forget it. Heavy makeup does not make you any more or any less a woman. Perhaps we need this message now more than in the 90's but we should focus on the liberty for the opposing team. The team that wants to paint their face every now and then and does it for themselves. Not for their boyfriend and not for other women but even if a woman chooses to "cake" her face, "bake it" and spend money on it, then it's none of your business. Let her wear her warpaint with pride.

“A consequence of female self-love is that the woman grows convinced of social worth. Her love for her body will be unqualified, which is the basis of female identification. If a woman loves her own body, she doesn't grudge what other women do with theirs; if she loves femaleness, she champions its rights. It's true what they say about women: Women are insatiable. We are greedy." -The Beauty Myth, Naomi Wolf