Women's Body Hair

[TheDeepestDepths]

When did body hair on women become so taboo? But more importantly why? It frustrates me when in summer I have to go to the effort to shave my legs every two days or so to be socially acceptably 'groomed'. We can't have hair under our arms or dark hair on our stomach or back.

I think it's awful that this is the standard that society holds us to. The social standard that says body hair is "masculine" or "unnatural" on a woman. But if it was unnatural, women would not have any body hair. The only humans who naturally have no body hair, and don't have alopeacia, are children. That's the standard to which some people think women should be aspiring, and it's a little frightening, to be honest.

[britishboy]

thats just society, and personally I wouldn't go near a girl whos hairy however if you like it sure grow it out!

it should be noted that alot of men shave their faces, chest and some legs

[Harry Smith]

thats just society, and personally I wouldn't go near a girl whos hairy however if you like it sure grow it out!

it should be noted that alot of men shave their faces, chest and some legs

Men don't shave because of society, they shave for fashion and they also keep it for fashion as well.

[TheDeepestDepths]

thats just society, and personally I wouldn't go near a girl whos hairy however if you like it sure grow it out!

it should be noted that alot of men shave their faces, chest and some legs

Yes, but men aren't reviled because they don't spend a lot of time and effort ridding their body of hair.

Don't you think that it's a little perverted that society feels women should be as hairless as children?

[Kameraden]

No, I do not. Body hair is disgusting and useless. We aren't monkeys rolling around in the mud or sand (well, if you're on a computer on this website, you're not) and as such body hair is unnecessary. Personally, I shave my everything except legs and arms, simply because it's socially unacceptable to shave that.

[removeddddd]

I think people interpret having hair on your body makes you look manly so a hairy woman would be strange i guess?

[Obsidian]

No, I do not. Body hair is disgusting and useless. We aren't monkeys rolling around in the mud or sand (well, if you're on a computer on this website, you're not) and as such body hair is unnecessary. Personally, I shave my everything except legs and arms, simply because it's socially unacceptable to shave that.

So basically we're supposed to completely conform to society and not do anything that it deems as unacceptable? We shouldn't think for ourselves, we should just let all of the socially acceptable beliefs become our own and not question them whatsoever? That basically sounds like mind control.

Society should not be telling us how we should look. What we do with our bodies should be up to us, because they are our bodies. And we should not be judged for whatever it is that we decide to do with them.

[Synyster Shadows]

So basically we're supposed to completely conform to society and not do anything that it deems as unacceptable? We shouldn't think for ourselves, we should just let all of the socially acceptable beliefs become our own and not question them whatsoever? That basically sounds like mind control.

Society should not be telling us how we should look. What we do with our bodies should be up to us, because they are our bodies. And we should not be judged for whatever it is that we decide to do with them.

Could not have said it better. I totally agree

[TheDeepestDepths]

No, I do not. Body hair is disgusting and useless. We aren't monkeys rolling around in the mud or sand (well, if you're on a computer on this website, you're not) and as such body hair is unnecessary. Personally, I shave my everything except legs and arms, simply because it's socially unacceptable to shave that.

... You think it's disgusting because it's unnecessary? We're not monkeys, but we've evolved from them so of course we have body hair. Humans are mammals so hair is part of the deal. You're a guy so you have a choice (in the social aspect) to have body hair or not. Women don't have this choice and I'm wondering why.

I think people interpret having hair on your body makes you look manly so a hairy woman would be strange i guess?

This is another thing I dislike, the idea that a feminine-looking man or a masculine-looking women are 'unnatural'. But women always naturally had hair the only reason I can find for hair being unacceptable and disgusting on women is the fact that the lack of it makes women look prepubescent - young, innocent, and not threatening. The idea of which disturbs me a little bit.

[Korashk]

Men don't shave because of society, they shave for fashion and they also keep it for fashion as well.
Since when is fashion not dictated by society?

[ElectricRose]

It's you're body, do whatever you like with it, and if somebody has a problem with it, they need to keep their mouth shut. I shave mine because I prefer my legs smooth & because it keeps me cooler in the Summer. I could care less what people thought of my legs, it's not like I'm marrying any of them or will most likely ever see them again, so they can look and waste their time criticizing or do something more useful with their time.

[Jess]

So basically we're supposed to completely conform to society and not do anything that it deems as unacceptable? We shouldn't think for ourselves, we should just let all of the socially acceptable beliefs become our own and not question them whatsoever? That basically sounds like mind control.

Society should not be telling us how we should look. What we do with our bodies should be up to us, because they are our bodies. And we should not be judged for whatever it is that we decide to do with them.

I totally agree with this. While I personally would shave if I get a lot of body hair, that is what I want; if a woman doesn't want to shave, that's up to her.

[Walter Powers]

It is society, but also men naturally have more body hair. It's impractical for us to shave anywhere near to the degree women do.

[TheBigUnit]

I can only think of us turning into hippies right now

[LouBerry]

It is society, but also men naturally have more body hair. It's impractical for us to shave anywhere near to the degree women do.

Most men only shave their faces and maybe once or twice a month they shave the downtown.

I, every morning, shave my legs, feet, arms, underarms, bikini line, EVERYTHING.

[britishboy]

Yes, but men aren't reviled because they don't spend a lot of time and effort ridding their body of hair.

true but we have to do our own things, im assuming you have never had to tone up a pathetic 6 pack?:P

it is expected for men to be tall and strong, while I am strong, I have a weak 6 pack and could tone my arms up more, how do I do this? working out, mens own evil, some people drink them horrible protein shakes


Don't you think that it's a little perverted that society feels women should be as hairless as children?

just fashion, dont want to wax/shave? dont, simple, however men generally dont like hairy women

[Harry Smith]

Since when is fashion not dictated by society?

It is to a degree but there is no universal indicator, I've seen a lot of men with full beards despite the trend being now not to have them so this would be considered out of fashion where as I haven't seen many women who don't shave their legs

[laurakoller0815]

its culture specific i guess.

[TheDeepestDepths]

true but we have to do our own things, im assuming you have never had to tone up a pathetic 6 pack?:P

it is expected for men to be tall and strong, while I am strong, I have a weak 6 pack and could tone my arms up more, how do I do this? working out, mens own evil, some people drink them horrible protein shakes

just fashion, dont want to wax/shave? dont, simple, however men generally dont like hairy women

I see where you're coming from but the two examples are still different. Are you called 'disgusting' because you're not muscular? Whereas you call women who don't shave disgusting. The standards to which men and women are held are treated very differently by society.

I suppose another point I was trying to make but didn't get across very well is that women are expected to be weak and small by society and men big and strong, like you pointed out. And the fashion with shaving until a women looks prepubescent seems to be connected to this mindset.

Industrialized western culture reviles female naturalness of any sort; our culture demands that women remove their body hair or risk of being the object of social contempt for the same reason we encourage women to starve themselves into skeletons: because we are threatened by overt displays of female sexuality; because we feel safer when women subdue, subjugate, and tame their bodies and their sexuality. Because we find the bodies of prepubescent females less intimidating than the bodies of sexually mature adult women, so we idealize women who weigh less than one hundred pounds and are free of body hair and all other secondary sexual characteristics, and when women fail to conform to this physically harmful ideal, we punish them with our mockery and scorn.

It's a bit hyperbolic, but it gets my point across.

[britishboy]

I see where you're coming from but the two examples are still different. Are you called 'disgusting' because you're not muscular? Whereas you call women who don't shave disgusting. The standards to which men and women are held are treated very differently by society.

I suppose another point I was trying to make but didn't get across very well is that women are expected to be weak and small by society and men big and strong, like you pointed out. And the fashion with shaving until a women looks prepubescent seems to be connected to this mindset.



It's a bit hyperbolic, but it gets my point across.

its just society, what can you do?:) also different men like different things, that should be remembered that men like different things!:) and on the quote you givern, where is that from? because its sounds like an extremist feminist wrote that

[TheDeepestDepths]

its just society, what can you do?:) also different men like different things, that should be remembered that men like different things!:) and on the quote you givern, where is that from? because its sounds like an extremist feminist wrote that

But society is in the wrong. We shouldn't just accept the way things are simply because we're not arsed to do any differently. If we did that we'd be a patriarchal, white supremacist, conservative society forever, with people being constantly marginalized and attacked for being in any way different.

Yes, different men like different things but we're not talking about any one person or even a group of people we're talking about society as a whole.

I found it on a different site talking about this topic. The language is very forceful but the fact is it's nothing but the truth.

[britishboy]

But society is in the wrong. We shouldn't just accept the way things are simply because we're not arsed to do any differently. If we did that we'd be a patriarchal, white supremacist, conservative society forever, with people being constantly marginalized and attacked for being in any way different.

Yes, different men like different things but we're not talking about any one person or even a group of people we're talking about society as a whole.

I found it on a different site talking about this topic. The language is very forceful but the fact is it's nothing but the truth.

if you dont want to wax/ shave dont! this is odd because I know girls hate it (especially waxing and eyebrow plucking) but I've never come across a women that doesn't want to do it. I personally dont like hairy women, so im happy with how it is, and again if you dont want to, dont:)

well it obviously has been written by an extreme feminist, I wouldnt read too much of that if I was you

[Harry Smith]

if you dont want to wax/ shave dont! this is odd because I know girls hate it (especially waxing and eyebrow plucking) but I've never come across a women that doesn't want to do it. I personally dont like hairy women, so im happy with how it is, and again if you dont want to, dont:)

well it obviously has been written by an extreme feminist, I wouldnt read too much of that if I was you

just because it's written by a feminist doesn't mean you should ignore it

[TheDeepestDepths]

if you dont want to wax/ shave dont! this is odd because I know girls hate it (especially waxing and eyebrow plucking) but I've never come across a women that doesn't want to do it. I personally dont like hairy women, so im happy with how it is, and again if you dont want to, dont:)

It's not a case of do or don't, whatever you like. It's a case of do or be mocked and scorned. Even girls who hate it shave, because the only other option available to them is to cover up all the time. Showing unshaved legs or unplucked eyebrows is not socially acceptable and the mockery that girls receive makes them paranoid and afraid to do as they like. We do it to escape ridicule.

well it obviously has been written by an extreme feminist, I wouldnt read too much of that if I was you

What's wrong with feminism? There's an issue with female supremacy, certainly, but it's not extremist to complain and talk about things that exist. She was absolutely right and for you to dismiss her opinion simply because you don't like that she was forceful is what I'm talking about: societies view that women should be small, weak and docile.

I'm not going to dismiss her because you think I should because you don't like what she's saying.

[britishboy]

just because it's written by a feminist doesn't mean you should ignore it

no, they over analyse everything, reading what they write is like pulling teeth

It's not a case of do or don't, whatever you like. It's a case of do or be mocked and scorned. Even girls who hate it shave, because the only other option available to them is to cover up all the time. Showing unshaved legs or unplucked eyebrows is not socially acceptable and the mockery that girls receive makes them paranoid and afraid to do as they like. We do it to escape ridicule.
no, most women and all I know do it to look and feel good, its the same reason women go out consistently buying nice clothes


What's wrong with feminism? There's an issue with female supremacy, certainly, but it's not extremist to complain and talk about things that exist. She was absolutely right and for you to dismiss her opinion simply because you don't like that she was forceful is what I'm talking about: societies view that women should be small, weak and docile.

I'm not going to dismiss her because you think I should because you don't like what she's saying.

they over analyze stuff, women dont like them and nowadays women are expected to be independent, get a good job, however many still want to live off rich

Merged. ~StoppingTime

[Harry Smith]

no, most women and all I know do it to look and feel good, its the same reason women go out consistently buying nice clothes



they over analyze stuff, women dont like them and nowadays women are expected to be independent, get a good job, however many still want to live off rich me

Do you have any evidence that women want to live off you?

[britishboy]

Do you have any evidence that women want to live off you?

this is irrelevant to the debate

[cant_stop18]

I'd personally be very freaked out if a girl was hairy, but I also make sure to trim myself.

[Ryhanna]

It's all up to what you want your body to look like.

I fucking hate how men are deemed hot when they shave their body hair, and distinguished if they let it grow, yet women are either sexy when they shave, or lazy and gross when they don't. What's up with that?

[ShadowBlade]

Nobody is obligated to shave! But it is a sign of a clean, health and stable person. Don't forget that the first thing someone sees in you is your appearance and not your personality. In my case I don't approach non-shaved women and many times not even men.

[Walter Powers]

So basically we're supposed to completely conform to society and not do anything that it deems as unacceptable? We shouldn't think for ourselves, we should just let all of the socially acceptable beliefs become our own and not question them whatsoever? That basically sounds like mind control.

Society should not be telling us how we should look. What we do with our bodies should be up to us, because they are our bodies. And we should not be judged for whatever it is that we decide to do with them.

If you have all of society against you your going to lose, just sayin. It's gonna be difficult to get a job if your a women with a beard!

It's fine to think for yourself, but logic tells you to to groom yourself up to par with other people.

And you can't compare making it socially acceptable for women not to shave the the Republican's civil rights movement. Give me a break!

[TheDeepestDepths]

no, most women and all I know do it to look and feel good, its the same reason women go out consistently buying nice clothes

Well then all the girls you know have a different opinion to all the girls I know. Are you honestly trying to say that they wouldn't feel self-conscious if they decided not to shave? Maybe because you think people who don't shave are 'disgusting' they didn't feel comfortable discussing their feelings on shaving with you? Just wondering.

they over analyze stuff, women dont like them and nowadays women are expected to be independent, get a good job, however many still want to live off rich me

Don't generalize. And I find it hard to believe that women don't like women who want equality. I like them. I respect them for having the courage to talk about inequality when there are people like you putting them down and calling them extremists.

What do you even mean by 'over analyse' anyway? Feminists (people who want gender equality) are going to see where people are not equal and they are going to discuss it. You don't like them because you just don't want to believe there is anything wrong with society, from all the debate threads you've participated in I get the impression you just don't want to believe there's anything wrong.

"Many still want to live off rich me" Do you mean men? Anyway, whatever you meant you sounded disparaging and snide.

[trimm_tom]

it is a choice u do not have to shave anything but understand that its a choice for others if they do not find it attractive as well

[tovaris]

Its the society what are you going to do...

[Obsidian]

If you have all of society against you your going to lose, just sayin. It's gonna be difficult to get a job if your a women with a beard!

It's fine to think for yourself, but logic tells you to to groom yourself up to par with other people.

And you can't compare making it socially acceptable for women not to shave the the Republican's civil rights movement. Give me a break!

I'm pretty sure it would be impossible for most women to grow a beard since facial hair is caused by high levels of testosterone which women do not have. The body hair we do have is far less noticeable than it is on men because women are naturally less hairy than men are. Even if a woman never shaved she still wouldn't have as much hair as a man.

If a woman totally hates shaving and she's only doing it because that's what is socially acceptable and that's what everyone else is doing, then I don't consider that thinking for yourself. I consider that being pressured by society and by the media and by whatever else to do something with your own body that you wouldn't be doing otherwise. And I think that's wrong.

I think that shaving your body hair is only part of the issue, because it's only one of the many expectations that are constantly being placed on women by society and by the media. I don't know if you've noticed, but there is a lot of pressure being put on women to look a certain way. We're made to feel that we have to go on extreme diets to be thin. We have to dress a certain way, shave all our body hair off, and we hold ourselves to ridiculous standards when it comes to our appearance. Women deserve to be given more freedom to look the way we want to, and not the way that society expects us to. It would make things a lot easier on us.

[CharlieHorse]

It's just the way our society evolved.

[TheDeepestDepths]

I think that shaving your body hair is only part of the issue, because it's only one of the many expectations that are constantly being placed on women by society and by the media. I don't know if you've noticed, but there is a lot of pressure being put on women to look a certain way. We're made to feel that we have to go on extreme diets to be thin. We have to dress a certain way, shave all our body hair off, and we hold ourselves to ridiculous standards when it comes to our appearance. Women deserve to be given more freedom to look the way we want to, and not the way that society expects us to. It would make things a lot easier on us.

This. This is the sort of thing I'm talking about and I couldn't have said it better. Girls are told from a very young age that they have to look a certain way: thin, white and absolutely flawless. And we're also told that we're going to fail because no-one can be flawless, no-one can be perfect. There's a reason that self-esteem in girls plummets once they reach adolescence and that's because they can never look 'ideal'. Society and the media tell us that we will have to spend copious amounts of time, effort and money to look in anyway attractive and I hate that our society is this way. Models are getting thinner and thinner to the extent that they are dying of anorexia while still modelling. Photoshop and airbrushing also add to this problem. The people you see in magazines do not look that way in real life but that is the standard to which we are being held. This is what is disgusting - not being unshaven or overweight or blemished.

[Abyssal Echo]

Obviously its your body and you can do what you want with it.
To me if a person is shaved or at least well groomed its a sign that they care and take care of themselves. As stated above the first thing a person sees is your appearance.
First impressions are lasting ones.

[StoppingTime]

I really have no idea why this is even a debate. There's nothing to debate as this is 100% a personal preference. If women want to shave, they will. If they don't want to, they won't.

If you're not going to date or be with someone because of body hair I'm sorry but you're a shit person. Either get over it or realize you need to fix something.

[Stronk Serb]

We don't need body hair. We are not apes. I see nothing wrong with it though, it just does not have a role in our day-to-day survival anymore.

[LouBerry]

I think that hair on boys and girls is gross if it looks like you never shave.

But, holy Jesus Christ on the Cross. If I don't shave for a day of two, and you can see little stubby leg hairs, and you comment on it, I will never speak to you again.