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Evolution of hair research paper
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Throughout the years of my childhood, I had always thought of hair as a just an aspect of someone’s outer appearance. Hair was just something that I would look at, but never ask myself why someone had their hair that way, or the reason behind it. Since I was so narrow-minded about what hair could do, I grew up thinking that hair was a gender, or an age, not something that could reflect you as a person. I never understood the power that hair could have, or even how a haircut could make someone feel like they had power.
Growing up I always restricted myself to what I could do with my hair, because of the fear of being different, or not fitting in. For the longest time I had long hair, because to me that was what beauty was for a female. I remember
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So, at the beginning of the summer I went to The New Look, a hair salon, and cut my hair four inches, so that my hair was shoulder length. Along with the cut, I got my hair dyed a dark brown with a blue undertone. For the next four weeks, my new hair helped me hold myself with more confidence, and showed me the importance of expressing yourself . Except, when the dye finally washed out, I still felt the need for change. To fulfill the need of change I decided to get a short, above the ear, style. After the cut, I was ecstatic, I felt as if it truly put myself out in the world, it made me feel as if a was a stronger, more powerful female. Changing hair can give someone a whole new outlook on themselves, or even make other people see them differently . Which is why change is such an important part of life, even if the it is just cutting or dying your hair.Adjustment to your hair can make you realize that people will treat you different for the color or the style.The reason behind this is that everybody has opinions on what is socially acceptable for hair, and if you break those rules you will either be praised, or
On August 3, 1979, a female was assaulted and raped in her apartment. Victor Burnette, 19 years old, was brought in as a suspect and the female said that he was the perpetrator. Burnette was convicted based on pubic hairs found at the scene. He spent seven years in prison and was released on parole in ’87. Two decades later, Burnette asked to have his case reworked using DNA analysis and was found to be not guilty. The serologist who worked his case was Mary Jane Burton. By the time Burnette cleared his name, at least five other people had been exonerated from their convictions due to Burton’s evidence. (“Victor”) Hair analysis has been a part of forensic science since the beginning. However, some have begun to question the reliability of
Alice Walker’s short creative nonfiction, Dreads uses imagery to convey her narrative about a hairstyle that was inspired by singer, Bob Marley. Dreads are defined as a “hairstyle in which the hair is washed, but not combed, and twisted while wet into braids or ringlets hanging down on all sides”, according to howtogetdreads.com. Imagery was chosen for this paper by the depth of Walker’s illustration of beauty that natural hair has that might seem to be abonnement or not professional by society standards. This reading sparks interests just by the title a lone. That people have mixed feeling about dreads, some might see it as being spiritual; or as a political statement. However, Walker loves the way her natural hair is supposed to form without
The existing literature on ethnic and racial studies among African-Americans has focused on issues pertaining to beauty and body politics especially on natural hair. Spellers and Moffitt assert that the body politics that one assumes, guides how one relates to a particular political ideology in a particular society. Black natural hair is considered as a way by which the true identity of African women can be understood (Jacobs-Huey). It is a symbol of power among black women; it influences how people are treated by others.
The kids I went to school with, the boys I had romantic relationships with, and even my family members, all made negative comments about my body hair. As a young kid, I believed my body hair was a personal problem. Experimenting with different hair removal procedures, some even painful. I wasted hours removing the hair on my body, in attempts to feel better about myself. My low self esteem became linked with the hair on my body. I believed I had too much body hair for a girl but according to Mills (1959) and the social imagination, I had too much body hair for society. My peers, as well as my family, had been socialized to believe that women’s body hair was gross, and unfeminine. Women had been taught to remove their body hair for decades now in the western world, and it was showcased or the lack there of hair was showcased in all forms of media. As a young girl, my mom bought me my first razor and paid for the electrolysis for the hair on my arm. It was in these actions, where the idea that it was my own problem started to form because it felt like I needed treatment for this problem of mine. I was perceiving a deep seated public issue as my own personal trouble. I can’t blame my mother or my peers because by the time my peers and even my parents were born, the western world had already determined that women should not have body hair. Christina Hope (1982) explains that in 1914 in America magazine’s had just begun
bad hair” debate that we often see in the Black community. When Rachel’s clique, the Jiggaboo’s, and Jane’s clique, the Wannabes, cross paths, an argument immediately ensues. The Wannabes are a group of fair skinned girls with long straight hair and blue contacts, while the Jiggaboos are darker skinned with kinky hair. The two groups immediately start throwing around insults, such as, “tar-baby” and Barbie doll”. This exchange embodies an issue that was very large in the 80s and still very prevalent today. In the 80’s and even up until recent, if your hair was not straightened, or permed/relaxed, beauty was a standard that you could not achieve. This is also seen with skin color and it all dates back slavery times with things like Pear’s Soap ads and the narrative that whiteness is
In the recent past year or two, a woman’s natural hair has become a big thing. Before, African American women, to be specific, were so disgusted by their hair. They would do anything in their power to change the “nappy” aspect of their hair to “beautiful”. They would use relaxers very so often and hot combs.
When India Arie released “I Am Not My Hair” and featured Akon on her track, it swept the hair care world by a storm and her message was clear, saying that hair did not define an individual and should not determine their status in life. She expressed her passion for hair and how it was to generate her own happiness, and not the satisfaction of others, similar to when we spoke about Madam CJ Walker in class and her passion for hair. Being that Madam CJ Walker was subjected to the treatment that people of color was given, she used hair as an outlet. India Arie brought light to the fact that people of color are generally judged by their appearance and put into a separate category, such as when she mention in her song: “good hair means curls and waves, bad hair means you look like a slave. At the turn of the century, it's time for us to redefine who we be.” In addition to her statement, Akon’s approach was similar and touched on the fact that young black males are often discriminated upon, denied jobs, and struggle in society overall the same as when people of color were discriminated upon during the Harlem
...just fashion statement, wigs were like a visual sign of who a person was and what social class they were in. Due to diseases and lack of personal hygiene, many suffered hairloss. Wigs were used to hide the social embarrassment of having no hair. Wigs back then and now will remain to do what they were originally made to do; allow people with no hair to have hair, whether the reason is for image and respect or simply not having hair.
In Ancient Indian civilizations, long beards were venerated as a symbol of dignity and virility. In fact, it even served as capital for debt settlement. I started growing facial hair at the age of 12. Not pre-pubescent fuzz, but actual bristles that flowed seamlessly from the hair on the side of my head to my chin. As you can imagine, this set me apart from the other 7th graders. I was awarded an air of wisdom and maturity that precedes my age, and teachers somehow attributed my academic aptitude to it. Over the five years of its existence, however, my beard has transformed vastly, and in every way, I have come out the better for it.
was as though everyone was enjoying each other and not fixating on my underarms. Physically, I felt fine. Emotionally, I felt inadequate. I knew that I needed to shave. Scientifically, I cannot offer any explanation as to why I felt this way. In her article Making Up Is Hard to Do, Sheila Jeffreys contends that there is little research on the reasons why women engage in other forms of “grooming”. My guess would be that it provides a sense of beauty. Women that allow facial hair or underarm hair to grow in today’s standards may not be looked upon as being beautiful. However, in the earlier years the old-time Pueblo world former professor Leslie Marmo Silko points out the old-time people thought it was crazy to attach such importance to a person’s
Almost 250 years of slavery and anti-blackness within the United States has created a divide in what type of hair is acceptable. According to Cynthia L. Robinson, “Black hair texture is graded” (Robinson 2011). Precisely, this means that a Black woman has either good hair or bad hair. Good hair has a resemblance of European hair texture, meaning straight and wavy curls. Good hair also diminishes the look of African ancestry. Bad is the complete opposite. The texture is kinky, coiled, and thick, giving the appearance of short hair (Robinson 2011). Hair that bears a resemblance to Eurocentric beauty standards is more beautiful and makes the individual with that hair type more beautiful as well (Robinson
The history of the significance and culture related to African-Americans’ hair is a very deep and interesting topic. There are many different hairstyles and troubles from having to live with those different sorts of hairstyles, but which hairstyle would someone choose and why? This book shared the experience of African-American men and women in the 1800's to the current era in extensive detail to help answer that question.
Hair is not just a part of you, hair is also a way for people to judge you. When Ifemelu cut her hair, people asked her if it “meant anything, like something political” (p211), or if she became “a lesbian” (p211). The way of wearing one’s hair has influence on people, good or bad. In Americanah, wearing an Afro may probably not make it easier to get a job. In a conference, Adichie said: “If Michelle Obama had natural hair, Obama would not have won [the presidency of the United States]”. Indeed, the image people would have had of Michelle Obama and thus of Barack Obama could have been different, as if something might have been “wrong” with
I remember one morning when I was around seven, my grandmother was braiding my hair. She always braided my hair every single morning in this beautiful french braid. But this morning was different than any other morning. She had noticed a bald spot. She didn't tell me right away but I noticed that she had stopped braiding my hair. After I had asked her why she stopped, she told me that I had a small bald spot. The naive, seven year old self that I was, I asked her if that was a good thing or a bad thing. She, of course, said it wasn’t good.
At some point in a woman's life, she is, if like most women, unhappy with her hair. A woman with straight hair wishes for curly ringlets. A woman with curly hair wants stick-straight locks. Thick and coarse desires to be fine and thinner. Fine and thin begs for thick hair.