With the help of a mirror, junior Zainab Shah applies makeup while sophomores Era Johnson and Ava Robertson look on. Shah argues modern-day beauty standards are unattainable and feel it’s important to look beyond surface-level beauty. “A healthier way to feel beautiful is to recognize yourself as an individual and all your unique physical characteristics,” Shah said. Photo by Sam Anderson
Story by Mila Segal
Out of 4,573 American adults, 35% believe that society values a woman’s attractiveness more than any other qualities of her personality, according to a report titled “American See Different Expectations for Men and Women,” conducted by the Pew Research Center.
This same study reported that 30% of the survey respondents believe nurturing and empathetic qualities are most important, and only 22% said society values a woman’s intelligence the most.
These are the social pressures causing young women like junior Zainab Shah to feel they must just adjust their outward appearance to be more palatable to others.
“Girls want to fit in, so they don’t feel different, and they feel like they belong in society,'' Shah said.
One medium for fitting in is wearing makeup.
“When I stopped [wearing makeup], I realized it didn’t make me happy,” she said. “It was just the idea of fitting in.”
Shah feels she is not alone in the desire to find safety in the crowd. Like Shah, junior Sadie Peinado has observed this behavior.
“My friends buy expensive clothes just to fit in and [wear] what other people wear,” Peinado said. “Some people think the more name brands a girl wears, the more she fits in, but, personally, I don’t.”
Golden Goose sneakers range from $400 - $700, which are sported by students throughout the halls.
“A few of my friends bought Golden Gooses just because others had them,” Shah said. “They didn’t even like them.”
Shah also believes clothes are important because it’s the most noticeable element of your appearance and can affect someone’s first impression of you.
“If you are wearing the right clothes, then you can fit into different groups at school,” Shah said.
Peinado believes there can be social consequences to not dressing in the mainstream fashion. For the school day, this includes athletic and loungewear.
“If you are wearing what is considered ‘weird clothes,’ then people will judge you,” Peinado said.
However, not every girl feels this pressure. Freshman Dakota Wulff doesn’t fear social cosqeuqueces based on how she dresses, and she believes in choosing her clothing for the day based on how she feels in the morning when she wakes up.
“Today, I was in a great mood, so I wore Olaf pajama pants and a Hawaiian tank top,” she said.
To be festive for Halloween, she came to school dressed up in a Granny Wolf suit.
“A lot of people made fun of me for it, but I don't care,” Wulff said. “My friends liked it and thought it was funny, and the only people's opinions I take more than a grain of salt are my friends.
Freshman Ashley Moore agreed. She doesn’t mind standing out and adds more color to her outfits when compared to the people she sees in the halls.
“I just wear whatever is most comfortable and what actually matches my style,” Moore said. “I'm going to wear whatever makes me happy.”
Moore feels strongly about staying true to who you are, regardless of others. She thinks that in high school, especially, it is easy to lose sight of what’s important.
“There is a really high beauty standard that other people try to enforce on a lot of us, [and people are] having to change themselves to fit the beauty standard,” she said. “When in reality, you shouldn't have to change who you are to fit someone else's point of view.”