Bald women sexy?

Bald women sexy?

Has she lost her mind?

What brought this on?

A friend of mine had to go bald because of an illness.

So, after some thought, I shaved my head and went bald with her as a show of solidarity (my friends already know this, but for those of you who don’t I am female too).

I wanted her to know I sympathize with her, and have compassion for her. I also wanted to let her know there was nothing to fear.

bald woman However, I overlooked what society in general thinks about bald women. Among females, a healthy head of hair is an indicator of youth and beauty. We have princess/suburban prom queen stereotypes of normality. Women need hair to have societal approval.

If you are a guy and you shave your head no one says anything. Unfortunately though, if you’re female, the sight of a woman’s bare scalp still makes society’s hair stand on end.

Despite how far we’ve come, beauty and sexuality remain tied to a woman’s hair. There is a certain amount of vanity in those tresses.

Social pressures regarding appearance are generally felt more strongly by women, and female head shaving is considered taboo to many people. Societal norms dictate that “girls should have long hair”. Even when baldness is caused by illness, it is taboo because it flouts conventions of acceptable femininity.

miss universe baldThe woman with the crown is Miss Tanzania, who was one of the Miss Universe 2007 candidates. Miss Tanzania had a shaved head during the competition which set off morality issues.

Miss Sweden unexpectedly pulled out of the event because of complaints in her country that 2007’s Miss Universe competition was morally degrading to women.

Morality, societal norms, and taboo are very sensitive issues, but I still want everyone’s opinion on this matter.

So, here are my questions:

* Are women who shave their heads degrading their identity?
* Are bald women sexy?
* What is it about a bald woman that generates so much controversy?
* Why when we see a bald woman do we assume she’s a lesbian, a radical feminist, a political extremist, or a skinhead?
* Why is a bald female head taboo?
* What is it with this global fetish with hair?