The emergence of genderfluidity and postgenderism in the make-up world
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Raluca Stan [1]
| Abstract: Make-up has been a gendered concept for centuries. Its use has been attributed almost exclusively to women in several historical eras, including modernity. However, I noticed two recent trends regarding this subject: the growing inclusion of men and people of other genders in this practice, and a process of undoing gender in the world of make-up. The objective of my research is to explore how these movements are reflected in the media. My approach is qualitative. The method I chose is content analysis. This study reveals that the artistic beauty world and social media have been embracing and promoting gender diversity when it comes to wearing and applying make-up. Decorative cosmetics are less seen as a source of gender restriction, and more as a fun way to explore one’s identity and creativity. Moreover, people are encouraged to share their experience with each other and to be supportive. Keywords: Gender fluidity, postgenderism, undoing gender, masculinity, femininity, make-up identity |
[1] University of Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania, smraluca@yahoo.com