Beauty and Brains? Too Good to be True!

The confines of Pink Think stipulate that a woman must adhere strictly to “proper female behavior” and the construct of femininity which “…is sometimes used as a code word for this mythical standard, which suggests that women and girls are always gentle, soft, delicate, nurturing beings…” (Peril, Pink Think 7). The emergence of the college girl brought many stereotypes to the institutions of higher education surrounding what constitutes as “proper female behavior”, most of these stereotypes being grounded in the tenets of Pink Think. Among these beliefs laid the idea that college women must down play their intelligence and defy “…the stereotype of the intelligent-but-unattractive woman” seeing as “wasted looks [were] a betrayal of [oneself] as a woman” (Peril, College Girl 126-128). So began the preoccupation with appearance, beauty, and wardrobe in hopes of proving that women did not have to lose their “feminine charm” in pursuit of higher education.

“Attention to appearance was seen as a positive step away from the negative stereotype of the college girl as a horn-rimmed-glasses-wearing-spinster-to-be, a modern improvement that showed just how far the college girl had come” (Peril, College Girl 127). One of the worst insults that could be thrown at a young woman was that of a spinster. Since part of a woman’s worth laid in her approval from a patriarchal, male-dominated society, rejection by men due to failure to look attractive was a terrible fate indeed. This rejection stung even more if the female in question had shirked in her duties to femininity because of her pursuit of knowledge at an institution of higher education: “…it wasn’t enough for a woman to be smart – she needed beauty too” (Peril, College Girl 127).

This problematic message begins at a very young age as can be seen by the WalMart commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJHWJHYH_bk . A mother speaks of her daughter’s first day of school and her insecurities at sending her child into an unknown environment in which she cannot accompany her. But this mother can “…give her [daughter] what she needs to feel good about herself, without breaking her budget”! What could this woman possibly be alluding to? Is it her daughter inheriting her mother’s aptitude for chemistry? No, of course not. Obviously what this woman’s daughter needs to feel good about herself are cute clothes that gain the approval and friendship of fellow classmates. This theme goes on to present itself in several college movies including “The House Bunny”.

The entire premise of the film “The House Bunny” rests on the audience’s assumption that it really is not enough for women to be intelligent; they must be attractive as well and adhere to the accepted notions of beauty: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5r9j1s8iSnY . The film depicts a former Playboy playmate becoming the house mother to the “loser” sorority at a university. The sorority’s members are made up of smart, yet unattractive (by society’s very narrow standards) and socially awkward. Their new house mother takes it upon herself to socialize these young women to not only be book smart, but, in effect, street smart. The sorority women undergo drastic changes in appearance and presentation and become “better versions of ourselves”, to take a direct quote from the film.

“The House Bunny” very clearly relays the belief that if women are going to go out on a limb and be smart, they had better be hotties to prove that they are still female and worthy of male attention. “The House Bunny” also enforces accepted notions of heteronormativity, assuming that the women in the “loser” sorority are all in the pursuit of acceptance and adoration from men. The absurd and unattainable beauty standard is also set by the girls’ new house mother, a former Playboy Bunny! I have news for you: no one looks like the Playboy Bunnies!

It is unfortunate that standards of beauty set the majority of women up to feel inadequate. What is even more unfortunate is that these women are taught by popular culture starting at an early age that their self worth rests in their physical appearance. Even intelligence must be coupled with an hourglass figure because: “…wasted looks [are] a betrayal of yourself as a woman” (Peril, College Girl 128).

-Irene Davidson