Beauty Within and Without Summary and Analysis

For centuries, women had been taught that their worth was in their appearance—or rather in the evaluation of one's appearance by others, mainly men. But women began to examine how they felt about their bodies. It was liberating in the 1960's when women began to choose not to wear bras and girdles and other constricting clothing worn to appear more attractive to men. Further liberation was realized when women were allowed to wear pants at the workplace. Some women decided not to wear crippling high heels forcing the shoe industry to produce low-heeled, more comfortable shoes. Some women abandoned make-up, choosing to like what they saw in the mirror without it.

Cosmetic manufacturers and the fashion industry initially feared feminism would ruin their businesses. Mass media joined their campaign portraying feminists as hypermasculine...