Musings of an Inappropriate Woman

kapookababy sent me this photo the other day, impressed that Heidi Klum, at least, was one woman who wasn’t afraid to look like a dork at Halloween.

My immediate reaction was, “Well, it’s easy to do that if you’re Heidi Klum” - who, after all, looks “hot” even in green face paint and a big red apple surrounding her body (or maybe it’s just that we know she’s hot underneath).

And then I realised what the real problem with “Sluttoween” is.

It’s not about women having fun with their sexy side (although that’s a big part of the motivation for the people dressing up). It’s not even about sexualisation, if by “sexualisation” we immediately take the leap to the act of sex.

It’s that, when it comes to mainstream beauty standards, women don’t get any time off. “Sluttoween” is ubiquitous because, even on official dress-up night, we’re expected to look “hot” - and looking “hot” is more about performance (long, styled hair, well-applied make-up, feminine clothes, skimpy clothes, heels - take your pick) than it is about genetics.