Day 5

Wearing a short wig has made me overly self-conscious of how I appear. Choosing what to wear everyday is difficult because although people have started saying that short hair suites me; I feel that if I don’t wear something feminine people will think I'm a “tom-boy” or a feminist or even a lesbian. As shallow as it sounds it’s the truth.

I think the fear of loosing my femininity by having short hair derives from the societal norms that we have become accustomed to that “conventionally, men tend to have shorter (and less styled) hair than women.” (Synott, 1993: 105). The constant use of this convention, mainly in advertising and fashion magazines, assists in permeating the norms and, in turn, making those who deviate from it (like myself having short hair) self-conscious.

• Kevin O’Brien (2009). Fashion Magazine Front Cover 2009 [online image]. Available at: http://www.magxone.com/misc-magazine/michelle-trachtenberg-fashion-magazine-may-2009/. Last accessed: 08 October 2010
• Pub Delux (2009). Guess by Marciano print advert [online image]. Available at: http://pub-de-luxe.com/guess-by-marciano-printemps-ete-2009-1386.html . Last accessed: 08 October2010
• Synnott, A (1993). The body social: symbolism, self and society. London: Routledge. p103.