EDITOR’S COLUMN
Is make up a plague on modern society? Do girls (or boys or other) still wear makeup in school? The answers to those questions: probably.
As a man, I have never really worn make-up, except on some especially wild nights. So why do I give a damn about who wears make up and who doesn’t? I’m not entirely sure; it just kind of irks me.
There’s an abundance of reasons to paint your face with chemicals, apparently. For many teens, it helps hide acne which when left hidden would be quite embarrassing and unsightly. Concealer is the “liquid confidence” that children of our age are legally permitted to own. But is this temporary confidence boost a crutch that leaves many girls without the confidence to feel content in their own skin? I don’t know. Let’s find out.
“Makeup is good, as long as you don’t become dependent on it,” said Nikki Kandler. “Most girls will wear mascara to school or something like that.”
Is there anything wrong with mascara? Probably not, unless you’re really cynical. Personally, I don’t see the appeal. However as Senior Max Russell stated, “the best makeup is makeup you can’t tell is there. It’s like a super ninja way of getting people to be attracted to you.”
What I found as a common thread among all the people I talked to (which was two lunch tables’ worth of people) is that none of them really cared if you wore makeup or not.
As I continued along my makeup journey, I realized that I was sorely mistaken about the gravity of this issue. At the outset of this article, I believed that makeup as a form of “self-expression” was a scapegoat for a corporate power that played off girl’s insecurities to make a profit. What I realized as I interviewed many students, both boys and girls, is that literally everything is like that.
Why do I wear the clothes I wear instead of whatever I can cover myself in for dirt cheap? Why do I put on deodorant when my smell doesn’t affect me? It’s all a matter of fashion. On a Freudian level, I’m doing it because of a biological instinct to make myself an appealing mate. The makeup industry deserves no more flak for providing an outlet to fulfill that desire than the sneaker business or whoever makes all the t-shirts.
I guess you could say makeup is overpriced, but you know, it’s a free country. My final thoughts: makeup… not so bad.
