I Just Want Your Validation

 From: Emma

       Starting from a young age, girls are told what to wear, taught how to act, and to overall receive approval from those around them. Many little girls can be found playing dress up for fun, or getting into their mom’s makeup. This is most likely encouraged even if they don’t recognize it.

        In the photos, you can see the subject being zipped into her dress by multiple hands, and another hand steadying her face as they apply her lipstick. These hands are representations of the mother figure in the subject’s life, encouraging them to be proper, and fit into tight clothes, to keep her figure nice and slim, to be the best looking girl of the bunch. These hands aren’t forceful, but they are steady. They take up lots of space in the frame and hold power even without much force. They encourage these actions and thoughts of becoming the prettiest, of fitting into society as a proper young woman, even if she may not be meaning to do so. But her mother’s mother probably did the same to her, so what else does she really know to teach to her daughter? In Girl Culture by Lauren Greenfield, her series of photos included a picture of Mary Cady and her fellow Southern Belles. She talks about her views of being a girl, the proper way to be a lady, and saying how men should take the lead, at least in her life. Now nothing is wrong with that, but she says how, “Being a southern belle is part of the rule for the family,” meaning that she didn’t really have a choice. She has been told her whole life that she needed to be a perfect wife and a proper lady, so she knows no other options. She knows only what was taught and encouraged. She is not upset at the hands that fed her and taught her this way of life nor were they harmful, but they did for sure impact her and will do so for the rest of her life.

       The subject of the photo has been, for years, seeking out validation from anyone she can; her parents, friends, family, and eventually boyfriends or girlfriends, as she has been taught to. As she grows older, she starts to start to seek validation through her sexuality, hence the red lipstick, which calls back to the late 1700s and 1800s where red lipstick was seen as a seduction tool and incredibly powerful. Despite this, she is still a young girl, she is still that innocent child, represented by her white dress. Though she may be shrouded in her innocence, surrounded by the white dress, the red lipstick still sticks out, it still shows her attempt to take control of herself and her sexuality. The close up of the lipstick being applied shows all the thought that goes into a simple element. Then the far-away shot that shows the insignificance of that simple task. Not only that, but just how much the minuscule task affects the overall look. The white dress remains the focal point of the subject’s appearance, showing that despite her attempt to enhance her sexuality, she is still innocent. In Lauren Greenfield’s photo essay, Girl Culture, one of her photos shows a young girl named Lily who is only 6 years old. In her interview, she says how, “[Teenagers] dress up cool so boys like them. I saw it in a movie,”. Not only does this show that she’s already worried about others opinions, but it also shows the effect media has on her view of opinions and how she should gauge them.         

         As mentioned before, she seeks validation from others and in the photo, I used the open space to show that others opinions don’t really matter at the end of the day. The subject spent time getting ready, putting on makeup and wearing a fancy dress, but in the vastness of the empty field, no one is there to let her know that she’s pretty, tell her that she looks amazing or that she looks “so grown up”. It’s hard for teenage girls to be their full selves when they’re taught to worry about others opinions, even if subconsciously. There’s a pressure to be liked, be innocent, and yet, not a prude; to be sexy, but not slutty; seek attention, but slyly and to remain coy. This highlights the power that has been given to others opinions, when really all that should matter is your own.

Works cited

-        Lubitz, Rachel. “The Sordid, f*Cked up History of Red Lipstick.” Mic, Mic, 29 July 2016, https://www.mic.com/articles/149814/the-sordid-f-cked-up-history-of-red-lipstick. 

-        Greenfield, Lauren. “Girl Culture .” Girl Culture - Lauren Greenfield, 2001, http://v1.zonezero.com/exposiciones/fotografos/girlcult/index.html.