From: Charles
Hair ties. I was talking to my
mother about what I could do for this project when we started talking about my
hair. I have shoulder length hair which in my mom’s generation was something no
guys had. The same was when I was
growing up. Very rarely did any guys have long hair let alone long enough to
need a hair tie. In most stores hair ties are all sold in the feminine care aisle
right next to the hair dye and shampoos that women mostly buy. The main point
is hair ties are for mainly women. This is because women are the one that have
the longer hair and need to tie it back. Often when I’m at work and have my
hair tied up people almost always address me as “ma’am” or “miss” until I turn
around then I often get bombarded by apologizes and the such. Men do not have
long hair. Obviously this is something that is changing. I have many male
friends that have long hair now and we often share the hair ties. But that’s
the thing, we always share those random experiences when people will say “miss”
and such. I chose hair ties because they are often always assumed to be for
women and girls and rarely for guys and whenever a guy buys or does anything
feminine is he looked at like he is weaker than others. Is that true now days
for a darn hair tie? Heck no. Yet if
this is the case for something like this why can’t it be the case for other
things. As my mom would always say to my dad when he complains about my hair
“times are changing”. Instead of me being afraid of change I am embracing it
4 comments:
I admire your boldness to post a personal issue and use it for a project. This ties into the self-sustaining prophecies because it all depends on how one perceives a certain situation, like one- either you are content and satisfied with your choice or you are put to shame. In your case, it a positive fulfillment because you are not ashamed of your choice to buy and use hair ties, which you should not be. Even though it is not a specific skill, it is a decision that is perceived to be more feminine than masculine disregarding the fact that there are more men using hair ties in this generation. The stereotypical issue regarding is that hair ties are more feminine than masculine and that guys are not supposed to wear hair ties whatsoever. So, you are generally going against each form of gender stereotype stages: self-stereotyping, confirmation, conformity, and permission. You did not give into this stereotype and you are not judging others (self-stereotyping and confirmation), rather individuals are judging you. Moreover, you are not conforming to the pressures of gender stereotypes by not wearing hair ties (conformity) and you are not stereotyping others because it is deemed necessary (permission). I applaud you for not conforming to the ways of these gender scripts and stereotypes. Continue to be you!
From: MG
The boldness of the hair ties really pops against the brown textured background. The picture is so simple, it forces the viewer to create their own meaning and understanding of the photo. If I hadn't read your description, I would have assumed the bright colors against the dark background were to symbolize that most females yearn to (and are taught to) stand out in society, but in small, inoffensive ways (like a bright hair tie). Standing out in too big of a way brings negative reinforcement, showing the delicate scale that women are made to live on, a scale which could be represented by the stacking of the hair ties in the photo.
Any number of people could have seen this image and come up with a different explanation, which I always find fascinating.
From: Morgan
As I scrolled down the page I stopped at this certain post because of the bright, bold colors of the hair ties caught my eye. I really like how the main focus was just hair ties and nothing else could come into play, this shows how meaningful this is to you. Long hair is a symbol for beautiful women and if women were to cut their short sometimes they are looked at as lesbians. This is all stereotypes that most people have developed throughout childhood to adolescence.
From: Morgan
As I scrolled down the page I stopped at this certain post because of the bright, bold colors of the hair ties caught my eye. I really like how the main focus was just hair ties and nothing else could come into play, this shows how meaningful this is to you. Long hair is a symbol for beautiful women and if women were to cut their short sometimes they are called "lesbians". This is all stereotypes that most people have developed throughout childhood to adolescence. Stereotypes about how women should look according to mens sex appeal, if they step out of these norms it's frowned upon. As well as stereotypes about men being well built like broad shoulders and unrealistic muscles to attract women and to look masculine. If men step out of them norms they are looked at as weak and most likely to be called "fags".
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