Readers, I have a confession. I have a disproportionate number of personal development books in my collection and find it hard to resist new ones. I recently selected the books I continue to revisit for their insights, advice and ideas. I use the term personal development advisedly. My selection includes career development, coaching, self-awareness, leadership and women’s development.
In this post, and from time to time, I’ll revisit more books that have left a lasting impression on me; books which challenged the way I look at the world, shaped what’s important to me and changed what I think and do. This week:
The Beauty Myth, by Naomi Wolf.
This is not a new book. It was originally published in 1990, but many of its messages remain current. In fact, I would argue that the messages are even more prescient than they were then.
The myth, or cult of beauty is determined by societal norms and ideals. Patriarchal economic forces shape the unfair expectations and norms that women face. The book is aimed at women who struggle with a negative body image, who feel pressured to look a particular way and also feminists concerned about modern beauty standards.
Beauty standards are a way of controlling women and maintaining the hierarchy
The author explores how, despite the legal and economic gains women have made, detrimental portrayals of female beauty have increased. The result? The creation of a beauty myth –something women should strive to pursue, achieve and maintain. The higher up the career ladder women go, the greater the scrutiny they face.
Professional Beauty Qualification (PBQ)
After WWII, the number of women in the workforce increased significantly, representing an increased threat to the male-dominated power structure. Appearance played a part in whether women were employed- or not. The author cites an example of the case in 1972 of a Playboy waitress, who was fired for having “lost her Bunny image.” The ‘measure’ of a Bunny:
- Flawless (face, figure, grooming)
- An exceptionally beautiful girl
- Marginal (is aging or has developed a correctable appearance problem)
- Has lost Bunny Image (either through aging or an un-correctable appearance problem).
The New York State Human Rights Appeal Board ruled in favour of Playboy and their right to determine whether a woman was pretty enough to work. This formal precedent paved the way for many more hiring/firing decisions. Women could also be fired for being too attractive. The PBQ created a potential lose-lose scenario for women.
Consider the recent Press reports of mature presenters losing jobs at the BBC, of age-related discrimination in the hiring of actors. Despite the legislation having been updated, the PBQ remains alive and kicking today, along with the gender pay gap.
The beauty myth is fuelled by advertising and beauty services and products
Ads featuring pictures of unattainable beauty provoke feelings of poor self-image for a reason. Women see the gap between what’s normal (but unacceptable according to whatever the current beauty standard is) and seek to ‘improve’ their appearance by purchasing expensive beauty products, procedures and clothes. As a moving beast, the beauty myth means women will always be chasing an illusory rainbow of unattainable standards.
Just looking at this week’s Sunday Times magazine, if I was aiming to achieve a ‘barely there’ perfect bride look, I would need to spend £419 on make up alone. This is a big income generator for magazines and for the beauty industry. There is much money to be made from feeding on women’s insecurities.
The beauty myth has dire consequences for women- physically, mentally and economically
The beauty myth cultivates envy, leading women to compare themselves with others and so contributes to undermining female solidarity. The author states: ‘imagine what women could achieve if, instead if working against one another, they worked together, free from the confines of the beauty myth.’
Shattering the beauty myth is a process of awakening
The beauty myth is cult-like in its allure. Beauty brands problematise skin in order to sell solutions; the diet industry promises the perfect size. This has become much worse since the book was published, with social media contributing to women’s negative self-image. It’s surely no coincidence that the beauty industry has grown exponentially in recent years.
We need to recognise the beauty myth for what it is. If women reject the beauty myth for the destructive, discriminatory standard that it is, only then will we defeat it. Women need to define beauty on their own terms, make conscious purchasing decisions, aware of the smoke and mirrors advertisers are using to trick us. Spending large amounts of money on so-called beauty -enhancing products might be better invested in property or pension funds, building women’s economic capital.
Ideal beauty is ideal because it does not exist; The action lies in the gap between desire and gratification. Women are not perfect beauties without distance. That space, in a consumer culture, is a lucrative one.
Naomi Wolf, The Beauty Myth.
See also my post on How to get more women into leadership roles. I explore why it’s so difficult for women to secure senior positions as women ‘never quite have what’s required‘. Some clear connections between Naomi Wolf’s messages in 1990 and this more recent research.
