A New Strand of Women

As women, there are few things we obsess over more than our hair. Whether we love it or we hate it, our hair defines our femininity (or lack thereof) and whether we realize it or not, we have used it to make a statement for centuries.

In the puritanical Victorian era, a well-bread women’s hair were sleek and modest. We kept our hair oiled and smoothed down over the temples with long “sausage curls” at the side and later with a heavy knot of curls or plaits in back. During the “Roaring Twenties,” societal trends reacted against these standards of beauty and popular new short “bobbed,” waved or hairstyles symbolized the growing freedom of women. During the times following the end of the Second World War, the glamorous woman was able to attend to all domestic chores without a hair out of place.

Now, in the twenty-first century, styles are eternally changing, and faster than we can catch up with them. However, we have seen innumerous hairstyles and haircuts in recent years and we can comfortably say this: all of the popular styles from the past fifteen years are actually variations and reinventions of older hairstyles, such as the seventies-inspired “Rachel,” made popular by Jennifer Aniston in the nineties sitcom “Friends,” or are a combination of two cuts. For instance, short bangs look similar to bob cut, but layers of blunt hair strings become these bangs extraordinarily sexy and stylish. In the same way, long waves could be combination of layered hair-cut and curls, the mixture of both and use of professional curling iron make these waves superb and funky.

The evolution of hair directly reflects the evolution of society and a woman’s struggle to find her place in it. For example, how many women chop off their hair or dye it a drastically different color after getting out of a long-term relationship. On some level, this is a statement to represent a transformation in our lives. It is a signal that we have changed, and that that we are different from the other women around us. Conversely, it can also proclaim that we are the same as a particular person or group of people. (Again, see: the Rachel cut).

Either way, changing our hair is a socially-accepted way of proclaiming our identity. There is something intensely personal about our hair choices, but at the same time it is totally public. Our hair is so easily changed compared to every other part of our body — and for that matter our lives — that is becomes a reflection of who we are.

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