....In the 20th century, however, much of the ambiguity disappeared with the emergence of the blond as a symbol of racial superiority. Long before Hitler seized power in Germany in 1933, anti-Semitism was accompanied by a new myth of Aryanism, encouraged by the new fad of eugenics. But Ms. Pitman also draws interesting parallels between the Nazis' adulation of the blond, the Soviet Union's promotion of the dynamic blond ideal and "the development of a radiantly sunlit blond American ideal, the WASP American dream."
....In the United States, though, by the 1940's the vampish images of the likes of Jean Harlow and Mae West had been replaced by what Ms. Pitman calls "socially well-behaved blondes," like the wartime pin-up Betty Grable. Yet within a decade, prudery had again been swept aside by Marilyn Monroe. Soon there were "dumb blondes" like Jayne Mansfield, regal blondes like Grace Kelly and girl-next-door blondes like Debbie Reynolds. And young American girls had their own blondes in the shape of Barbie dolls. All that has changed since the 1960's is that it has become simpler to become a blonde.
Why this continuing fixation with blondness? Ms. Pitman has no single answer, but she suggests that, by choosing to become blond, women may feel younger, whiter and sexier. And if this idea was long promoted by poets and painters, it is now constantly drummed into the public by television and magazine advertising.
Yep.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Chris
That's why I married one.
2 - Murphy herself
Hair is one of those things...I'm not blonde, but i'm a curly-head...That will need a post of it's own.
3 - Anne
I dyed my dark brown hair blond once. It looked terrible with my skin tone.
4 - The Theory
i'm partial to red heads and black hair myself...
peace.
5 - Cindi
As a natural blonde (very blonde), I'm frequently accused of dying my hair. It's actually very annoying. I wish my hair were red...much more alluring I think.
6 - Krista
I read this article a few months ago inside a local paper and although I found it very fascinating it's almost--oudated. Five years ago I would have whole heatredly greed with the general sentiment of blondes as the "ideal" and somehow superior to their dark haired counter parts, but now that almost feels like a fading memory. It seems now that the "ideal" is almost for females to almost have darker features. There is now an embrace for ethnicity and consequently a new found interest in dark hair. Chistina Aguilera, Britney Spears and Mandy Moore-- all once trade marked for their blonde hair have now dyed it dark brown and black. Our idea of "beauty" is shifting considerably, to the point that it encompasses a large variety of traits, and in particular dark features.
7 - cindy
i'am a brunnete but i recently dyed my hair into a very light honey blonde.and ever since i made that choice everything has changed people say it looks really good and that i look so much sexier and attractive.so i'am just really happy
8 - Eric Olsen
Some people look better blond - I do.
9 - Elysia-Nicole
Thanks for the post. i need a topic for my college research paper, and i hated doing something so normal, so i decided to write on : Why are blonds considered Dumb? I am a natrual blond, brunette, and redhead...pick one, and you'll find it. I often get lumped as a dumb and easy blond, and a bitchy redhead or a wannabe-blond brunette, but I just wanna know...I'm smart enough to be in college, then why am I considered dumb?
10 - Mindy
Hmmm...blonde hair is only pretty when it's 100% natural, IMO. Marilyn Monroe was in fact brunette, as was Jayne Mansfield. I notice that many people stereotype all dark-haired people as "exotic" or "ethnic", as if being brunette is a foreign trait somehow. Incidentally, brunettes are the majority throughout the world, in almost every race. Blond & red hair, when it naturally occurs, are recessive traits. Blond children rarely remain blond into adulthood.
I happen to be a brunette. Dark hair, dark eyes, creamy pale skin. I'm white of Dutch/Welsh background but here in Miami I'm constantly being referred to as Latina by those who don't know me or spoken to in Spanish. Other whites look at me as this exotic creature because unlike them, I don't dye or bleach my hair to play up my "whiteness." Never mind the fact that I burn instead of tanning (people assume that all brunettes have dark skin or a rich tan), I speak very plain unaccented English, and I have a very English "white-girl" WASP first, middle, & last name.
Not all brunettes are Latin, foreign, or of African descent! Some of us are as all-American as the blond next door. Having blond hair does not make one white woman "whiter" than another. It is your bloodline, not your hair/eye color, that counts. Look to people like Elizabeth Taylor, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Phoebe Cates, and yes, even Marilyn Monroe...who has been oft-praised for her "blondness" when in truth she had hair of a rich coppery brown. All hair colors & textures are beautiful, as long as the hair is healthy and worn with confidence.
11 - HW Saxton
Blonde hair can look good on some women.
I think that it's the way she wears it
that makes it look good and not just the
color itself. I've known natural blondes
that look so much better when they go a
shade or two darker and vice versa.
I have also seen some beautiful black &
other dark skinned women with dyed blond
hair that are just sexy as all get out
even though it's obviously not real.
Again, I really think it's got a lot to
do with facial structure and the style
it's worn in as much as the color itself
IMO.
12 - Cerulean
Eric, tell us about being on TV. Are you famous?
Don't hesitate to get highlights if you need them. Ask women with good highlight jobs who does their hair. Only some hairdressers are good colorists, but they're worth it. Do not do your own blond highlights. Do not!
13 - The Demigodd
Black hair is sexy. Fuck blonde.
14 - Eric Berlin
Shouldn't all the godd's creatures be loved equally?
15 - The Demigodd
I haven't a problem with blonde, but it's overrated. Black is better. Brown is very good, too.
Actually, I really don't care about hair. A girl needs to be intelligent and have other ASSets.
16 - DrPat
To be totally anal, "blonde" is the correct adjective for a female person with that color hair. Men, dyes, and the hair itself take the adjective "blond." And as a noun, a blonde is female, a blond, male. No -e.
I always figured that's where -E took her screen-name from...
You have it mostly right, Eric, but not 100%. So I just HAD to pick that nit!
17 - Eric Olsen
being on TV is fun but it can be a lot of work - those are my thoughts on being on TV
18 - Eric Olsen
I will remind myself about that two years ago, DrPat
19 - Chuck
This is a fascintaing piece, since its a question that people don't like talking about openly -so its perfect for the web. I wonder about this topic often since as much as I try to find beauty in all women, it never fails that anytime there is a natural blonde around, she steals the show. I for one unconcsiously turn my head anytime a blonde passes by, and I always look to see if she's a natural blonde (which I've found is so easy to spot despite all the good hair dyes). Let's face it, for most males, natural blonde women are preferred, and I'm sure that if given the choice, in probably 80% of cases, men of all nationalities will pick the natural blonde woman above all others. I'm beginning to think there must be something innately attractive about women with natural blonde features. I noticed also that in most cases, brunettes do indeed tend to have darker features than natural blondes, despite what Mindy writes. Yes there are some exceptions (such as herself), but having been close physically with brunettes and natural blondes, natural blondes are generally lighter in all areas, especially parts of the body associated with eroticism, where I must admit differences are accented even to a greater degree. I don't like to generalize, but that seems to be the case in 90% of my observations.
I just want to say to Cindi, the natural blonde, that I hear the same thing from other natural blondes I've been with -- that people accuse them of "dying" their hair --no surprise since, as the article above states, only 5% of women are natural blonde, while 33% of non-blondes "try" to be. I can't understand, however, how Cindi would rather be a redhead when she has the type of hair that most women wish they had. I suggest she dye it red once and see how much eaiser it is being naturally blonde.
Whether its the influence of media or not, I've found that in terms of both beauty and personality, I've never been more satisfied than when I'm with a true blonde. A lot of men, and most non-blonde women, probably won't admit to what I've stated above, as was the case with me.
20 - Bob A. Booey
I thought I should lend my expertise here.
First of all, Jenny Finch is a man. She's a hot man and hot for a man, but she's a man. Don't be fooled by the hype. If you've ever seen a picture of her at the wrong angle, it's like watching a blonde version of the Incredible Hulk. The only reason she gets attention for being hot is because she's a chick jock. Kournikova's kinda hot (and way hotter than Jenny Finch), but she's been overrated the same way. Maria Sharapova's kind of hot and has that tall, lean, leggy modelish body, but she strikes me as a little bit touched if you ever hear her speak -- I know she's Russian and all, but she's a little crazy, I think.
Secondly, I'm not fooled by most blondes. I like hot blondes, but if you're a blonde chick, you must A) not be thick, because being blonde makes you look more piggish, and B) must tan. I know this sounds piggish, but it's true: pale Irish blonde women with freckles are the exact opposite of hot. If you can't tan naturally, get spray tans and use a bronzer. I've always been a tanning bed guy, but I've learned that's really bad for your skin, so I have been comfortable enough in my masculinity to have done the spray tan myself a couple of times.
Most blonde women are just not hot and lots of guys get fooled easily by blonde hair. You have to learn the BAB blonde test: if a chick has fake dyed blonde hair, would she still be hot if she had jet-black goth hair or if she was bald? If so, she's beautiful and hot all on her own. If not, she's ugly and not hot. Britney Spears, for example, would always have failed the blonde test. Charlize Theron wouldn't, although she's not looking her best these days -- or perhaps it's just hard to find her hot after Monster.
There are definitely women who are aided by the tan blonde look who wouldn't otherwise be very hot. I don't really watch Big Brother anymore, but I watched part of an episode last week and the tan blonde chick there isn't pretty but she's almost hot thanks to the tan and the blonde hair (although her hair's too light).
If you're brunette and naturally beautiful, you can have the pale creamy skin like Mindy does and it's fine. If you need a tan, Mindy, do the Mystic Tan or get a self-bronzer.
I actually prefer brunettes, but blondes are easier to come across because there's something about a girl's need to dye her hair blonde that makes her really eager to seek the attention of men. Being blonde in America definitely gives you girls an evolutionary advantage, though, because most guys are really dumb and hard up.
Now there's good and bad blonde -- really light, platinum blonde hair is gross. On the other side of the spectrum, really fake dye jobs with dark black roots showing isn't as bad, but is still too obvious unless you mind being regarded as a skank. I think "natural" blondes don't really look as good for some reason because they don't have the variation in color -- if you're a natural blonde, you should still get lowlights done.
For guys, though, I'll be honest and say chicks don't really like the blonde hair, particularly the lighter it is. You can get away with it better if you tan like Olsen did as a blonde. But still, dye your hair a darker color -- that means eyebrows too if you're an albino. And no facial hair if you're a naturally blonde man -- nothing looks less masculine than some transparent, wispy face fuzz. Chicks prefer the darker hair -- you can have highlights, but don't go too yellow or you're either a German techno artist or stuck in 1998.
That is all.
21 - carol
Brunettes that are bleached are still Brunettes. Add the 'bleach' word to their name. Leave Blondes out of it. Do not use the name Blonde when you are talking about Brunettes. If they are bleached then call them Bleached Brunettes. Pass it on.
Anybody get that?
22 - -E
My goodness, is this a touchy subject for some or what?
Currently I have my hair colored to be much much darker than it is naturally. I like it, but I like my naturally lighter hair too.
But hey, I say power to the people for whatever hair they have, because there are plenty of folks without. :-P
23 - Mindy
Hmmm...well, Chuck, natural blondes are a minority today. Lots of luck finding a woman who has been blonde all her life without the help of artificial agents. They're out there but they're hard to find in most parts. And no offense, but you can't really speak for all men when you say men prefer natural blondes. Men have varied tastes & preferences when it comes to scoping out women. Blondes might be preferred among most men, whether the blonde is natural or otherwise, while other men might prefer a red-haired woman or a brunette. There are other factors besides hair color when selecting a potential mate. Some men like tall women, some men prefer petite women, some like curvy women, some like busty women, some like heavy/plump women, some like glasses, freckles, long hair, small breasts, etc. If the woman per se doesn't have a pretty face or pleasing disposition, her blonde hair serves no real purpose.
While natural blondes tend to have very sparse or light-colored body hair, a brunette's body hair is more visible because it is darker like the hair on her head. I have very little body hair. Brunettes often have brown or hazel eyes, and sometimes olive skin. However, the difference in coloring has more to do with genetics, heredity, and racial background. Some blondes appear differently from others, as is the case with some brunettes. Liv Tyler (daughter of Aerosmith rocker Steve) is a brunette & she's a lot fairer all over than any natural or bleach-blonde that I've ever seen.
She might have dark, shiny, near-black hair...but she also has beautiful brilliant blue eyes & snowy skin. These are traits typically associated with blondes, yet she and many other brunette women have them. My mother has dark hair & blue eyes as well. Her eyebrows aren't nearly as dark as her hair. I sort of look similar, except I'm brown-eyed, following the typical "rules" of a brunette. Maybe the brunettes you've seen tend to be from various ethnic backgrounds & that would explain the allover dark pigmentation, not just the hair and eyes. Hispanic & Indian women are typically dark-haired, dark-eyed, & brown-skinned with dark body hair. The visual effect of dark hair & very fair skin is an attractive combo, IMO. Jessica Simpson has a fake tan & brown eyes and although she's naturally blonde, she appears darker than Liv Tyler. Paris Hilton's natural hair color is dark blond & she has brown eyes, but she bleached her hair white-blond and wears blue contacts, hence she only appears fairer.
There are many variations in coloring. I've seen natural blondes with green, gray, & brown eyes, and tanned skin. Some of them had body hair. It might have been a bit lighter, sandy-brown or dark blond in color and not very much of it, but it was still there. I've seen brunettes with hardly any body hair at all, very fair skin, and bright blue eyes. It is all about what your parents blessed you with. I was blonde as a very little girl & then my hair turned dark brown in my early teens. It is okay to be attracted to a certain type of woman, but would a man turn down a beautiful woman just because she isn't blonde? Women who bleach their hair blonde do so for many different reasons. They might want to feel more beautiful in societies where blondness is revered as the beauty ideal, they might want to deny their heritage, they might be curious about living life as a blonde, or they might want to try a bold new look & attract more male attention because they hear that "blondes have more fun".
24 - Eric Olsen
I had forgotten all about this thread - it's hysterical. For a lot of people the "yellowness" is flattering. My older daughter has darker blond hair but darkens it because she is sick of "the wrong kind of attention."
My two younger kids have very blond hair thus far in their young lives. they get a lot of attention for it also. In fact a boy on my daughter's t-ball team stared at her for a while when they first met, then asked to touch her "yellow hair."
I've always dug blondes, but my wife has reddish hair and freckles and has completely changed my mind about such things
25 - Natalie Davis
I have always been partial to blonds, perhaps because I always resented not being one. After hitting the age of majority, I did go blond for a while. It was fun; eventually I went to a deep strawberry-blond shade and then settled on auburn. After getting pregnant the first time, I went back to my natural dark-brown and there my hair remains. I actually have a box of reddish-blond dye in the cupboard. May take the leap again... In terms of lovers, though, as an adult, I tend to fixate on brunets and people with dark-blond hair, and I have a particular love for Irish redheads. Spousal Unit, for the record, is Irish and brunet (though bald); my daughter had blond hair as a child but it's now light brown (dyed cranberry) and David, my wee Irishman, has gorgeous dark-brown ringlets. My blond crush of late is Heidi Klum. (sigh)