General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Hairy woman does not shave [View all]love_katz
(2,579 posts)Contrary to what some here seem to think, it does take courage to buck social norms.
Come on, women are under a lot more pressure than men to conform to society's standards of appearance.
If that wasn't true, women collectively could quit spending billions of our less-than-men-earn income, and we could put it into donating to the election of candidates who would make women's rights a priority.
I know from personal experience that if I don't shave off the hair from my arm pits and legs, and then go out in public in clothing which reveals that fact, I get horrified looks from complete strangers. They look at me as if I haven't bathed in the last month.
I have trouble feeling o.k. about being hairy in places that are not socially approved of, mainly due to the constant bombardment of what is acceptable in terms of standards of appearance for a woman, and the ridicule I have experienced because I don't look like the women in the magazines, on t.v., in movies, etc.
Expecting adult women to look like we have not gone through puberty is sick and incredibly sexist.
Most people don't realize that our current standard of removing all hair from women's bodies began as part of the Inquisition. The 'judges' were afraid that the accused woman could hide a spell in her body hair, which would overcome the will of the 'judge'.
Removing one's body hair is about fashion, not about cleanliness (except possibly, as one poster above pointed out, if one has to journey to the tropics.).