I've been a feminist ever since I knew what the word meant. For me, feminism is about empowering both women and men to be whole people. In the area of sexuality, feminism is about women fully claiming their sexual selves and it's about men moving beyond performance to incorporate intimacy into their sexual lives.
So is it counter to feminist ideology when women make an effort to enhance their attractiveness with stylish clothes, makeup, pedicures, and curling irons? For some, those enhancements play into the anti-feminist valuing of women as mere sex objects, vying for male attention and approval. They reject anything that isn't 'natural' and demand acceptance for who they are, sans makeup.
There is no question that women have been excessively evaluated based on their appearance. And we are still living with the legacy of women as sexual objects. But I don't believe that enhancing one's attractiveness - whether you're male or female - is a betrayal of feminist values. More on that tomorrow.
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