Unnatural Stereotypes

The process of men versus women’s time necessary to get ready has long been comedic fodder—women are portrayed as taking forever, while men simply have to play around with their hair a bit and they’re good to go. However, the reason it typically takes women so long is that they have to apply layers of makeup to make them “presentable” or “attractive,” the latter in hopes of attracting a mate. But as a science major who has had to study animal mating patterns as well, this process of females having to be the ones to attract males is completely backwards from what occurs in nature. In many animal species, it is often the male who has elaborate courtship rituals or adornments to attract the female. Thus, female animals are the ones who have the choice of whether to propagate the male animal’s familial line. With humans, it seems to be the opposite: women decorate themselves and parade around with the hope of attracting male attention, even though it is the female who determines the male’s reproductive fitness. This reflects the system of male domination in place in human society. Men control the resources, thus forcing women to vie for their attention.