Short Response to 9/27

When reading Jennifer Reid Maxcy Myhre's article I felt quite uncomfortable with many of her statements and beliefs. I can honestly say that I am not attracted to men with long hair and I rarely like when women have shaved heads. With that said, this was not the main reason why I did not like her article. I feel that in her attempt to be rebellious and unique, she is actually become the stereotypical feminist. When I asked my roomates if they were feminists they replied "no I shave my legs." Many of them thought feminists were hairy, ugly and masculine. I feel that Myhre is the epitome of these stereotypes, she exclaims "Giving up my 'femininity' was my first action as a feminist."This statement made me upset, because I feel that we have spent a lot of time in class discussing other qualifications of feminists. Yet, Myhre seems to base her status as a feminist directly on her looks. I do understand her point that looks should not matter and that our appearance defines us within society- but I feel that she is playing into this. I also agree that labels such as "masculine/ butch" should not be used, but I do not think that the fear of being called these names is directly from male supremacy. Finally, I feel that this article is negative, because the women who are feminist but care about their looks are cast in a negative light. It seems that she places herself on a higher pedestal and looks down upon the women who aren't as brave or courageous as she is by shaving her head.