Women cannot be pleased: for some reason, those whom nature has endowed with thick curls always strive to straighten them and complain about their disobedience, and the owners of perfectly straight hair longingly dream of curls. Why?
Our sympathy for smooth and curly hair succeeded each other strictly for decades. So, the straight strands of the hippies of the 1970s were replaced by an all-out passion for permanent waving and hairstyles in the style of Angela Davis. In the 1990s, curls went so out of fashion that even dark-skinned pop divas diligently straightened their strands. The era of the XNUMXs was softer and more diplomatic, but still welcomed curls and waves. Following this logic, today straight hair should again become relevant. But well-known hairdressers and stylists in unison declare that the texture of the hair is now not given much importance. “Naturality is in vogue—meaning curly hair should look even curlier and straight hair even straighter,” says Eugene Souleiman, Global Creative Director, Care and Styling, Wella Professionals. And she agrees with a smile that women, nevertheless, continue to strive for an image that is opposite to what is given to them by nature: “In any beauty salon you can see how a hairdresser conjures with an iron over the luxurious curls of one client, next to him, another master winds straight strands of the second on curlers. The eternal desire of a woman to change will not be eradicated by any trends.”
Read more:
- Revitalize tired hair
Rebellious flesh
The “curly or straight” dilemma has deeper reasons, says sexologist Gerard Leleu: “In earlier centuries, a smooth hairstyle symbolized humility and virtue, and an unruly mop of hair symbolized sinfulness and violence of the flesh. Because curly strands are associated with pubic hair, and such associations are incompatible with the canonical image of female virtue. Recall the famous episode from Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, when Pastor Brocklehurst demands to shave the curly hair of Julia Severn, Jane’s classmate. “My mission is to kill the desires of the flesh in these girls, teach them to maintain modesty and modesty …” **
“Smooth hair is a sign of control over femininity, a symbol of restrained sensuality, the gentle submissiveness of a wife and the asexuality of a mother,” the sexologist continues. – That is, the attributes of those women who are “safe” for men. In a broader sense, tamed curls speak of our fear of the body in its primitive, natural form. We hide its smells, remove hairs from the skin – and in the same way we strive to streamline the hairstyle. Just to once again demonstrate their power over nature.
Children’s “horror stories”
Intervention in the structure of the hair is often caused by a desire to take revenge on them for the bitter resentment of childhood. How many tears were shed over curls when you had to comb them every morning? And how to forget offensive nicknames because of “rat tails” or nasty “icicles”? In the transitional age, it is on the hair that the teenager brings down the storm of his protest. For teenagers, the ability to change their hairstyle is a visible sign of independence and a way to become more attractive to the opposite sex. Because of unrequited love, and sometimes just because of an offensive word, yesterday’s curls are replaced by a short haircut, pigtails – permanent waving, light brown tone – at best, platinum blond, and in the most radical – gothic black, azure or fuchsia. But even after the extremes of puberty, the desire for a radical change in hairstyle at critical moments in life often visits us.
To twist or not to twist
“After changing the structure of their hair, my clients often say: “I feel like I was born again!” – says top stylist Jean-François Lazartigue, who was one of the first in France to develop hair straightening techniques. And he recalls a girl who “hated her hair so much that she even stopped washing it. I suggested she just straighten the strands. And do not believe it, after that she completely changed: she took up her mind, resumed her studies … She literally felt like a different person!
Read more:
- Me and my hairdresser
The ability to intervene in what is given to us by nature gives us a feeling of freedom: we can influence events and our own lives! But to change the shape of the nose, chest or hips, it takes a lot of time, effort and, of course, money. And changing hairstyles does not require such costs. With the help of simple devices (ironing irons, tongs, hair dryer …), coupled with cosmetics, you can quickly turn from a smooth-haired shy woman into a curly beast, and vice versa. Do you remember dress-up role-playing games in the bedroom? But after all, diversity can add brightness not only to sexual, but also to ordinary life.
* G. Leleu “The Male fear” (I read, 1994)
** Sh. Bronte Jane Air (AST, 2011).