make up is misogynistic oppression

[sixtyandsomething]

I hate make up, because of the devastating damage it does to the lives of women and girls

Obviously I don't wear any, so it doesn't damage my life.

But I am a teacher, and see its devastating impact on the lives of literally thousands of girls

It is ridiculous to think it makes women look "beautiful". Women without make up are beautiful. Women with make up look like they have a load of chemical crap smeared on their face to cover up their natural features. Which is what they do.

Thinking this looks "better" than a face without make up is just misogynistic programming and conditioning.

Girls are literally taught and programmed and schooled and conditioned to believe they can't go out without their faces covered. I speak to girls who tell me they will kill themselves if they have to take it off. They are surrounded by media images of women smeared in the crap, and are conditioned to think this is what a normal female face looks like.

It is expensive, time consuming and bad for your skin, but worst of all it is oppressive.

Just look at this picture and compare the natural look of the men, who just have the minimum make up required for the lighting, and the massively overexaggerated, false, completely covered up look of the women, who apparently need to cover their lips with an unnatural colour, paint extra circles around their eyes, change their eyelashes and eyebrows, and cake all the skin on their face in gunk in order to be fit to be seen.

And if you look at this picture and think "what is she on about - those women just look normal" then PLEASE stop for a moment and ask yourself WHY you think gunk-smeared to the point that no natural skin can be seen is "normal" for a woman!

I am not expecting much agreement, as I think so many women are so tightly in the grip of the (mostly male run) cosmetics industry, that they can't even see how brainwashed they are

But please think twice before passing this oppression on to your daughters.

Wouldn't it be amazing if the next generation of female BBC news readers grow up in a society where they feel free to show their actual natural faces in public.

It literally saved my life as a teen and 20s. My acne was so bad I had to use professional cover make up. I gave me the confidence so socialise, try new things, talk to people. No one saw the me that sobbed from the pain in my face or the red scars and pustules over me face

This breaks my heart for the younger version of you. Unfortunately I imagine the op is this kind of 'teacher'.

I love wearing makeup. I do it because I like everything about it. I do it for me, I do not give a fig what you or anyone else thinks of it or reads into it. I wear a thin layer of light foundation and a lip pencil. Underneath it, I wear moisturiser. It keeps my skin in good condition and stops it from drying out. It protects against the sun and wind. It takes me about three minutes to apply. Not time consuming at all. I am a feminist through and through and if men want to wear make up it's fine with me. I am very concerned about the environment. I make sure empty make up bottles and lipsticks are recycled though my products last me months and even years. This post seems to me to be akin to telling girls and women what they shouldn't wear. Its judgemental. Maybe run a post about how boys and men ( and a few women and girls) are repressed and brainwashed into playing video games. They can sit on the computer for hours on end ignoring their partners and children in favour of the lure of the game. Now that is a massive problem and it is fulled by consumerism and addiction to gaming.

I agree with this. For me, music, art and writing bring me joy and make me feel better and they elevate my mood. I also find makeup really enjoyable to put on and wear- I like the artistry of it.

That doesnt mean I am miserable, depressed, insecure, unhappy or lacking in anything when I am not writing, drawing or listening to music. I am not miserable without those things, they simply enhance my life- same with makeup. It gives me a boost. I dont "need" to do those things, I "want" to do those things. Big difference.

Not all make up is to 'cover up'. That's a little like saying a beautifully cut black jacket is worn to 'cover up' one's breasts.
Modern, porno inspired make up is joyless, as is the insta perfect look, but wearing kohl or a classic red lipstick is rather life affirming. Have you read 'The Thoughtful Dresser'? It's very good on why we feel a need to adorn ourselves.

I wear make up and like wearing it. I'm not going to stop wearing it. It makes me feel good. I couldn't care less what anyone else thinks about me wearing make-up. I don't wear it for men. I've been happily single for over a decade.

Make up fashion changes all the time. Most recently it's been a heavy, glamour look with lots of contouring, blending and highlights on noses. Not my kind of make up but the fashion is already starting to change. It's quite dated to be so heavily made up. So you'll start to see whatever make up is in fashion next soon enough.

And whatever it is, you're welcome to either wear it or not. But you're not welcome to tell other people what to do. The same way any comments from me about what you wear or how you style your hair are not welcome.

What a lot of bollocks.

Exactly. I never understand it when women describe their bras as some sort of oppressive torture device.
What the hell are they wearing?

@custardlover @Startingagainandagain agree entirely. Well articulated.

Exactly. I never understand it when women describe their bras as some sort of oppressive torture device
What the hell are they wearing?

I dont get this either- I wear non wired bras and have large boobs, if I didnt wear some support it would be uncomfortable and dont even get me started on jogging- that would be bloody awful for me (not others,- ME) without a bra.

I thought it was all about the TikTok skin care routine/clean girl/natural looking beauty these days?

It is, but there’s a subset of MNers who are convinced that it’s still 2018 and everyone goes out plastered in contour with highlighter that can be seen from space and “slug brows”.

I’m uncomfortable with the value judgements of “of course my DD doesn’t wear ANY makeup” as though that makes one a better parent than someone who’s daughter or son does like makeup. I love and wear makeup if the occasion presents itself, my daughter has gone from wearing full glam to none. She’s an adult and it’s her choice. I think she looks fantastic with a full face as she’s very skilled at it. It’s just another form of artistic expression.

I’m uncomfortable with the value judgements of “of course my DD doesn’t wear ANY makeup” as though that makes one a better parent than someone who’s daughter or son does like makeup. I love and wear makeup if the occasion presents itself, my daughter has gone from wearing full glam to none. She’s an adult and it’s her choice. I think she looks fantastic with a full face as she’s very skilled at it. It’s just another form of artistic expression

Well said. I wore plenty of makeup as a teen- I dont recall my parents ever feeling let down that that they raised such a horrible disappointment of a daughter 😆I still managed to get two first class degrees, and start a successful business from scratch despite my love of mascara!

The 'of course my daughter doesn't wear it' attitude makes me 😂. My mum in the 1950s smuggled it in her bag and put it on on the bus.

😂😂😂

I agree. It’s so silly to make some sort of virtue out of it.
I hardly ever wear makeup. My mum is similar, whereas my grandma hardly ever left the house without applying lipstick. My daughter went through a phase of experimenting with fake lashes, and has now settled for lighter makeup. All valid choices.

Okay, so what about doing your hair nicely? Or dyeing it? Or wearing nice clothes? Where is the line between male oppression and just wanting to look nice,? Should we all walk around in shapeless sacks?

Masculine heteresexual or homosexual men do their hair, some dye it too, wear nice clothes etc

Make up for daily use is sold to women and feminine homosexual men - because society still look down on feminine essence or feminine identfying people who not beautifying themselves for others’ pleasure

It is okay and healthy to want to look our best. The problem is when people get obssessed with fashion, make up, skin care, plastic surgery etc

The pressure is a lot harder on feminine identify or feminine essence people and of course WOMEN

Add high heels to the list

Who are the “feminine essence people”? And who exactly is the society” who tells them to do things?
Society, that’s all of us.
As seen on this thread, not everyone likes makeup. So not all of “the society” tells women to “beautify” themselves.
Seeing the strict social norms and expectations some people describe, I sometimes wonder where they actually live.
In the UK I see plenty of women not wearing makeup and in the recent years only very few wearing high heels.

I dont like make up and I dont like to wear heels so you dont need to preach to me

I do like to wear dresses and have colour in my nails sometimes

I’m sure you understand what society and feminine essence people etc are and of course you understand that these terms never is all or nothing and 100% but a way to describe a majority subconscious way of thinking that has been around too long and is not questioned as often and as deep as it should - making people just conform / accept rather than challenge
And again when I say ‘people’ I don’t mean every single person in the population around the whole wide world

I’m not preaching to anyone.
You say “society still look down on feminine essence or feminine identfying people who not beautifying themselves for others’ pleasure” and then go on talking about excessive skincare routines and plastic surgery. I just don’t recognise what you’re describing as an attitude prevalent here in the UK.
Maybe that’s because I’ve lived in and have friends from other places where expectations of how women should look and behave are much more pronounced.
Here, I see women who’ve had plastic surgery or/ and wear lots of makeup, but I also see many without.
I see plenty of women wearing casual, comfortable clothes and rarely any high heels.
I dress this way myself most of the time and I don’t feel like “the society is looking down on me”.
Makeup manufacturers want to sell their products, sure. There are many women who buy into it, but also many who don’t.
How do you know that women who wear makeup do it just to conform and not because they actually like it?
You say you like wearing dresses and sometimes paint your nails - do you do it to conform?
And sorry, no, I don’t get the concept of “feminine essence” people needing makeup.
If a (gay) man chooses to wear makeup, surely that’s because it’s what he wants and not because there is some unwritten rule about it?
I also know several effeminate men who go without.

I think you have a problem with understanding generalisations or the lack of

I did not even mention the UK or any country singurlarly

Anyway

It's personal choice & personal reasons for wearing make up. I go bare faced when I've nothing planned but like to cover up slight imperfections on my skin when I'm going out. It give's me a bit of confidence in the fact I'm not worrying what people think of my skin imperfections.

Women like you OP are just as damaging to other women as any misogynist. I bet you’re the type to judge a women for wearing make-up, and sorry but that’s not your place. I’m all about choice when it comes to feminism. The women news readers on your OP look perfectly normal and not over-made anyway, they look pretty much like they would without make-up, and are not undermined in any way because they’re wearing some, still doing a serious job.

Of course, the beauty industry itself is problematic and contributes to plastic waste no-end, along with perpetuating impossible standards, but that’s also got a lot to do with the capitalist machine. A bit of mascara won’t turn a women into an oppressed victim of misogyny, you’re being too militant about it.

I've worn makeup on and off nearly all of my life and definitely never felt oppressed - in fact, anyone who has tried to do so has got pretty short shrift and it certainly had nothing to do with a bit of mascara. I wouldn't even have given that any thought.