So why are people so "disgusted" by leg hair? Why only on females?
Why do people hate and even feel disgusted by `leg hair` on females? Why aren't we disgusted of leg hair on males?
So why are people so "disgusted" by leg hair? Why only on females?
It is not about being okay or not okay. It is about being more pleasant. many men if not all, may not feel disgusted by the natural leg hair of a woman, not the excess hair but the natural hair that is less than a man's possible leg hair.
but it is very natural to them, while they expect something more sensual from looking at there. so the issue about it begins there. when they expect more sensuality from every part of a woman's body and they do not get as much as they expect.
now the sensuality, the sexiness of a woman either physically or mentally is bound to her femininity and the level of it. in the physical matter of sexiness the more feminine you are the more fragile your body will be. that is why thicker women also sometimes are considered less feminine than a fragile teen girl in her prime. little boys when they have girly voices and fragile thinner bodies are considered very feminine-like. teen boys like that played the role of young women in some plays in ancient Greece.
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So this idea and image of femininity that is an innate image not made up, is followed in this matter too. when men see women they want to feel more femininity. so the more fragile a girl is, the more clean and a kind of polished she is she is more sensual and attractive to the man. and the leg hair, the body hair in general , are the traits that makes the body distanced from that special state.
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Also body hair and removing it is related hygiene. maybe not very much in today's world where everyone has easy access to cleaning material and water. but removing the body hair was a norm from the older times. like many other beauty-related behaviours it began in ancient Egypt. Egyptian women removed all their body hair. and it was spread around the Mediterranean sea. though every nation had their own ways of cleaning, it was only more advanced in there.
and as hygiene is a factor of attractiveness we see in ancient Roman era too it was a sign of class and beauty.
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enjoy some hairy legs as well.
Mho doesn't matter. just do not fight with old norms only for the sake of rejecting and not accepting. have a reason when you fight a norm, all norms had a reason for their creation.
there are classifications for them as well. fight the right ones like purity concept. not everything that you find bears the name of tradition.
Right Mesonfielde seems to want to go against anything that's the norm. Even as he types on here he's following norms. You can't run from them all.
@Red_Dragon what norms
It seems you try to avoid any and all norms.
@Red_Dragon overstatement. I question what is necessary and what is useless.
Even if they are natural?
@Red_Dragon well, define "natural norms".
@Asker and this one seems to be very necessary.
about the hygiene effects I myself have experienced being out and not having access to bath for weeks some times for more than three weeks. In those situations if I wanted to have leg hair I couldn't even clean myself with the wet towel that I had. It would be much harder to remain clean and clean.
for the beauty part , there is a glimpse of feminine in existing in men and a glimpse of masculine existing in women. But usually women like a man who is more into the extremes of masculinity and men like women who are more into extremes of femininity.
this urge for change appears here. but the difference that is seen between men and women is that masculinity is more of a psychological state than physical but femininity is strongly bound to the physical appearance.
these norms are natural and naturally created following an innate perception of beauty and attractiveness.
note this, human make changes for perfection. he...
…is not bound to the way he is crafted, though an acceptance of it exists and should be existing in all.
If by these standards humans should accept to live in the caves as well.
Wolf Girl just gave you a example.
@wölfin-fräulein I get warm easy. I hate the heat. Shaving my legs makes my body cooler. Like you mentioned in your original post I also like the smoothness. I mean yeah I get the feminine thing too, but with me I see it more as aesthetics. I don't know if that's the same thing, but I like the way my legs look when they are shaved. Plus you're right about hygiene. Hair traps sweat and dirt in.
@Asker
these were actually not norms as we see in the religious ones.
these were habits that became norms through time. sometimes the habits of more wealthy classes of the society that had more access to cleaning material. and after the society became more advanced and a town became a city and more people got access to the material these became accepted and followed by all.
and they are completely different by religious morality or unnatural concepts.
@Red_Dragon that is a natural feeling. smoothness and cleanness adds to attractiveness. whether man or woman.
masculinity is more of a psychological state than physical.
While this is all historically sound and informative, I can't shake the feeling that this is similar to how females wear skirts while males are not allowed to do so, and thus claiming it to be "natural" is a bit over the top.
@Asker the example is very different. skirt doesn't have anything to do with hygiene and an innate way of following a behaviour.
I said these were more of habits that became norm because it was accepted by all by their benefits.
about clothing there are differences in men and women's clothing but a skirt solely does not define the difference that is innately followed.
The heels for example was originally Persian and it have been worn by Persian men not women. when it came to Europe too it was worn by both men and women we see 16 century men wearing shoes with a kind of heel. but in time it changed and men didn't wear 'high' heels like women because they didn't feel the need for it, it was made to be worn on horse back in a special form of Persian stirrups, and again because the first time in Europe too it was used by mostly upper class women.
but a kinds of shorter heel still exist in men's fashion too.
either way, clothing is a different area on this subject.
i couldnt vote because my option is not up there.
I shave when i want to sexify my legs so if my legs are not going to be shown then i won't shave them. Many times my boyfriend wanted to have sex when my legs were not shaven and i was not even trying to get all made up and be sexy so i wasn't expecting that my boyfriend would want to have sex either but im pretty sure he did not even notice because its not like he was trying to stick his dick in my knee caps and shins.
lol A few times he was like "your legs are so soft and smooth" while we were cuddling after sex and i was like "Babe i didn't even shave them today they are actually really hairy" lol and then he was like "oh well i couldnt tell, its not like you look like a wolf man."
When a guy is super attracted to you and in love with you he really can not see your flaws.
also all of thoes guys that demand that their girl has shaven legs probably never had a girl friend. When in a relationship guys will realise that girls are human and can't beautify themselves 100% of the time. And that when a guy is ready to have sex he is not going to turn his girlfriend down becasue her legs are hairy.
@bijinbijinbijin - quite possibly the BEST answer here! I, for one applaud your notion. Up voted.
I don't really like leg hair on men either but ya, seeing it as disgusting is just immature, it's normal to have leg hair for women, but I'm not sure all men realize this. They're so bombard by images of totally hairless women all the time
You know in japan they used to break a little girls feet over and over again to appeal to certain beauty standard and men thought women's feet just naturally looked like that. Everything else was odd, same thing here
I also think it's quite hypocritical of a lot of guys to expect that girls shave all the time but if you'd ask them to do the same they'd be outraged. I'd never ever date a guy like that
Wasn't that foot-breaking thing in China?
"To enable the size of the feet to be reduced, the toes on each foot were curled under, then pressed with great force downwards and squeezed into the sole of the foot until the toes broke.
The broken toes were held tightly against the sole of the foot while the foot was then drawn down straight with the leg and the arch forcibly broken. The bandages were repeatedly wound in a figure-eight movement, starting at the inside of the foot at the instep, then carried over the toes, under the foot, and around the heel, the freshly broken toes being pressed tightly into the sole of the foot. At each pass around the foot, the binding cloth was tightened, pulling the ball of the foot and the heel together, causing the broken foot to fold at the arch, and pressing the toes underneath."
./..
...
"An attribute of a woman with bound feet was the limitation of her mobility, and therefore, her inability to take part in politics, social life and the world. Bound feet rendered women dependent on their families, particularly their men, and became an alluring symbol of chastity and male ownership, since a woman was largely restricted to her home and could not venture far without an escort or the help of watchful servants."
./..
"When the Communists took power in 1949, they were able to enforce a strict prohibition on foot-binding, including in isolated areas deep in the countryside where the Nationalist prohibition had been ignored. The ban remains in effect today."
@jacquesvol ok?
@Why aren't we disgusted of leg hair on males?
I am. i think body hair is gross. but i certainly dont think its worse on one sex over the other.
lol @ the whole its manly to have hair and unwomanly for women to have hair.
so basically to naturally be a woman, you have to be unnatural. worse than stupid.
I'm fairly neutral towards body hair and wouldn't care either way whether someone has it or not, in fact shaving it somewhat bugs me because I know that's not natural, I've been an advocate of trimming many times. But I must admit, I don't like my own leg hair that much - but that didn't get me to shave it or anything because I'm way lazier than that (seldom I trim it but I'd rather just wear long pants) :P
i dont think hair is 'gross' iu like the feel of smooth skin. gross was the wrong wry to use. and i wouldn't reject a guy who doesn't shave but i would reject a guy who doesn't shave bc he's a guy but thinks women should bc they are women.
if attraction is purely nature and not at all consciously constructed by social forces, and having hair makes women naturally unattractive , then mean are 'naturally' pedophiles. which in nature would make no sense for obvious reasons- - we become extinct if men were just fucking 8 year olds.
I consider little fuzzy hairs on a womans' legs, arms and back more sexy than disgusting.
I remember coming from Greece to Italy on a ferry which had a pool. Women were sun bathing. There was one blonde woman who had her well tanned back full of fuzzy blonde hairs. She was a lot older than my 16 yrs, (maybe double?) but I had an instant boner, just from seeing her back.
Body hair on any guy looks unattractive to me. (No, -before you ask it- I trim my beard, shave only my face, that's all. And yes, my wife has some fuzzy hairs.)
Anyway, I don't think anyone has the right to impose obligations (like shaving) on the other gender.
It would mean that one can command and the other has to obey. Not thus.
Yeah, I don't entirely understand the severity of it. I'm not sure guys care as much as they think they do, and I think they care less than girls think they do.
Frankly, I've known several girls who don't shave their legs. Met a girl at a music festival who was unshaven wearing shorts. All I can think is "damn, nice legs" and after that "leg hair actually looks better on girls than I thought"
Mostly I just run on my usual policy: If it's something I don't do myself, I have no reason to expect others to do it. Simple as that.
What bothers me is when they try to make it a "statement" about it. Like showing her legs to everyone and saying, "Yeah, I don't shave my legs, take that patriarchy! Take that, men!" ... when nobody around her even gave a shit in the first place.
Frankly, though, I think most people could look better with less body hair. I sometimes wish guys could shave our legs without getting flak for it. I already shave my chest and pits. Not my face, though. I look awkward without a beard.
I'd say most guys prefer shaven legs. "entitled" is a strong word, though. It's one of those overused buzzwords.
""Mostly I just run on my usual policy: If it's something I don't do myself, I have no reason to expect others to do it. Simple as that.""
This. And many people actually don't understand that concept based on "but women are different, so it's reasonable to expect them to do this". This is where most double standards come from, including the idea that every female is supposed to be completely willing to have stuff put up their butt. Same thing, really.
While I admit it could be "annoying" that someone is proud of their behavior countering 'the patriarchy', to be honest it somewhat makes sense. Many girls feel ashamed of their leg hair merely because of peer pressure.
Never cared either way. Always wanted to date a hippie chick who would just let it grow every once in a while.
Used to know a girl who wouldn't shave and it was a part of her overall free-spirited personality that I loved.
Sure, everything's nice smooth, but it's not going to kill me to see hair. Bigger things to worry about.
Opinion
19Opinion
Entschuldigen Sie Bitte, I know its a dick thing to say, but, any hair other than on the head or eyebrows, is a turn-off to one degree or another for me. It will NEVER be a deal-breaker, because if I love you, your physical appearance is of very little concern. That being said, however, I don't want to touch your legs if they're hairy, and would be embarrassed if you are out to dinner in a dress, or skirt, etc. But if you arre just loafing around the house on a long weekend or vacation, your comfort is much more important than whether or not I'm finding your legs sexy. (Furthermore, I am a definitely 'leg man.' for whatever reason, breasts, ass, abs, don't do it for me. I like short girls with wide hips and smooth legs - so maybe it means more to me than most other guys.) Though, I would never ask a girl to preen the way I want, like she works for me or something. But truth be told, most guys are assholes and WOULD tell a good girl do it. So, all in all, she should WANT to shave, in the way I WANT to keep in shape FOR HER, or do whatever thing she likes, because I want her to be happy. Of course, that being said, I haven't been on a date since October 2007.
A number of the girls that I've dated were completely shaven/bare below the neck even before I met them, and nearly all of them, when I asked them if they had a grooming preference for their guy, said they preferred me to be natural (or, perhaps, moderately trimmed).
The pretty universal opinion was that these girls wanted to be the GIRL (aka the SMOOTH ONE) in the relationship, and they preferred me to be the MAN, and much like I enjoyed them best smooth, they enjoyed me best hairy and rugged. Not that I have any particular overabundance of hair - I'm not one of those "bear" types - but they liked that I was "rough and manly" and that they were "soft and smooth."
Obviously, different people have different opinions, and that's fine, but realize that many women groom for their OWN preferences, and not just for mine or other guys who like what I like.
Haha, I wouldn't say I'm disgusted by it. It's just one of those things where if I have the choice, I prefer she shaves. It's like different kinds of apples -- a mcintosh vs a golden-delicious. If you've never tried either, you'd think "big deal, they're both apples." But once you try them, you just end up preferring one kind of apple over another.
Heck, that's why I shave where I do. Decided, what the hell, I'll try it. Then I thought that I look better shaved in certain areas, so now I manscape regularly. Just think it looks better. No doubt my choices are attractive to some women, unattractive to others--they have their preferences too.
There are only two areas with hair that I prefer hairless, regardless of gender, and those areas are the armpits and genital area. Armpit hair is a turn of for unknown reason, I don't know why I get turned of by it. Genital has to do with feeling.. flesh on flesh feels better than hair on flesh, a togue also feels better on flesh than on hair.
The rest I don't really care about. I do prefer smooth over hairy because skin feels much softer to the touch. So again not much to do with the esthetics but more to do with how skin feels without hair vs with hair.
Trimmed or shaven genital area?
I need to feel smooth flesh with my tongue and not a coarse area. So I do prefer on both men and women shaven genital area. Same with armpits (I like to lick armpits and like mine to be licked to). I almost feel like I have to say sorry hahaha. You make me feel bad about liking it smooth in those areas LOL :D
Esthetically I actually think a trimmed genital area looks better on both men and women!
armpit hair traps in odor that is why it is unatractive. Even when you put on deodorant in the morning you will still have some smell at the end of the day. I noticed that when i shave my armpits, i can go without deodorant for a day and have no smell. But when my armpits are hairy they will defintely make me smell within a couple of hours of getting out the shower unless i put on deodorant. My fiance has hairy arm pits and he always wears deodorant and by the end of the day that deodrant wears off
Yep I agree on the not feeling bit / noticing bit my gf knows i could look at her all day if able, i sometimes find it impossible to notice anything hair wise she did ask once if she looked and i thought she was getting hairy answer i felt she was perfect she said "oh good my imacs ran out"
If you're going to ask that question, you might as well ask why women can't be bare chested in beaches just like men.
It's a norm for women to cover their breasts in environment where males are bare chested and it's also a norm for them to shave their legs as it gives a feminine appeal.
We've been conditioned from thousands of years to think that mean are rough and masculine which implies that men having body hair makes him rough where as we've been conditioned to think that women should have a feminine appeal; aka long hair, nice tits, bubbly ass and silky skin..
So really the average guy's issue with female leg hair comes from social conditioning of of what the ideal female body should be.
In certain tribe cultures in South America and in Africa, women don't cover their boobs and don't shave and the men there are indifferent to it.
The comparison between swimsuits and shaving legs is only partially valid, the reason why females "cover up" is because breasts are sexualized, and public display of "sexual parts" is deemed inappropriate and illegal.
Those "thousands of years" are honestly only as much as your age goes back, which for you isn't longer than the date of 1990.
But I agree that it is social conditioning, I just don't understand the purpose.
By the thousands of years, I meant that women shaving their legs is not a new thing. Well I guess you could argue that in the 1800s and early 1900s when they dressed more conservatively and most women covered their legs, then there'd be no reason to shave.
And lets remember that society sexualized breats by censoring them. When you make something forbidden/taboo, it creates some guilty desire for it.
I'd like to think when humans started to become farmers and more invested in agriculture that the men would mostly work on the field while the women stayed indoor or did family activities. And you could imagine that after a hard day of cutting sugar cane, wheat, etc that he'd want to come home and feel something soft. At least i think there might be a correlation between men's coarse work and the envy of something firm/soft/silk as opposed to the harsh sun and mosquitoes they were exposed to outside.
I'm disgusted with it on my own legs but not on anyone else's. I keep them shaved even in the summer. I remember in the summer we were at the beach. A woman had hairy legs there and the people in my group started talking about how disgusting she was. I told them that if she's happy like that then that's all that matters. For me, I guess I've always believed I should be hairless. I remember asking my mom when I was about to start kindergarten if she could help me shave my legs for school. I don't know why I thought I should but I wanted to. Of course she told me no. She didn't let me until I was 12 even though I kept asking. I shave everything not just my legs.
Oops I meant I keep them shaved even in the winter not summer.
"in kindergarten? :-0
Yup in kindergarten.
You must have seen someone else busy shaving legs then. Mom or sister or aunt.
It's a stupid thing men to control women. Being able to mold us to their ideal makes them feel masculine
I actually think they were just indoctrinated into believing that "femininity" is what they should look for, and "no leg hair" equals a subset of "femininity".
i'm not disgusted by hair on women or men lol. i don't understand why men in particular are -so- disgusted by hair on women. it's really strange to me. but anyways, i see us all as mammals and having hair is part of that. what i'm more concerned with is personal hygiene :x
i'm not disgusted by my own leg hair but i also abide by the social custom placed on women to shave or wax.
I think its down to personal preference if im honest. And its the way society is its seen as abnormal for women to have hair on their legs and armpits. I find it a huge turn off but thats down to my personal preference. Not everyone thinks the same and you confirm that haha
I'm indifferent. I think that the women who wants to shave their legs should, and the women who prefer their legs unshaved should keep them that way, it doesn't really matter :)
Yeah, but apparently currently 10 guys in the poll feel entitled to claim that a female must shave their legs because they are female. How do you feel about that?
I think that if you love someone you don't care about something like leg hair :) And if guys think that they're entitled to claim that, women should be too.
I'm not really a fan of body hair, but others are free to do what they want with theirs. :t I don't find it attractive, but it's not a deal breaker. As for myself, I get rid of it all – I like being nice and smooth. :3
Same here, I prefer smooth. Especially the genital area and the armpits. Armpits is a must though, that actually really puts me of.. Regardless of gender.
I like the look and feel of no hair on a woman's legs or armpits.
I'd like either, haha.
I'm not disgusted by leg hair on women. I don't think it looks feminine, but I am not disgusted by it. On myself, I dislike it, and find it annoying. I like my legs being smooth and lotioned up even in the winter.
Armpit hair tho, disgusts me on both sexes. NASTY.
What's wrong with armpit hair?
I don't like mine either, but I never really decyphered what's wrong with it.
it's just a mass of hair that sits in a small, enclosed, sweaty place collecting sweat and deodorant. that shit is nasty and probably teeming with bacteria.
If the guy doesn't have that much, it doesn't bother me, but if he puts up his arms and it looks like he's got a furry coconut under there, -50 attraction points. lol
I'm disgusted by my own leg hair :P. Does that count?
so what about women?
I don't like leg hair on women.
Do you shave your legs?
Yes.
Well played. No double standards here :D
I don't like leg/armpit hair on me because it's not culturally acceptable and makes me feel very self-conscious. If it was culturally acceptable, I probably wouldn't shave much.
Here's a question though: why do girls have to shave their legs but not their arms? Hair grows on both.
I saw a girl with 1-2 inch hairs all down and up her legs and I was turned on because I saw her as different and uncaring of what society might think. Not afraid to be herself.
I don't like either of your choices for answers. Its not that I feel ENTITLED or anything like that.
Its just that having hair on legs is manly. I mean a girl can do what she wants with her body, but that doesn't mean I have to find it attractive.
Females also have leg hair. The only reason why "leg hair" is considered "manly" is because females are encouraged (or more-so shamed and bullied) to shave it off.
Well I don't know where everyone else is from, but if she is in America and she doesn't want to shave her legs, don't! A girl should do what makes her happy, and if she finds a guy that likes it, more power to her.
However the world works the way it works. Standards of beauty are formed by culture, and regardless how how much we want it to change, it will always be engrained. It annoys me how girls like guys with Anglo-Saxon features, but there is not a damn thing that can be done about it.
I'm not disgusted by it on either gender. In fact, I don't even think about it. It's just the norm for guys to be hairy while girls are smooth.
And people just accept "norms" without questioning them? If I had to do something regularly just because some people feel entitled to tell me what my body has to be like, I'd eventually just tell them to shove something up their ass, even though there's a stick up there already.
I guess so. And it's not even just girls accepting them and shaving their legs just because it's the norm it's just nice to be able to feel your legs and they're smooth. After I shave I can't stop feeling my legs cause they're silky. And my legs look nicer.
yeah i dont think anyone would want to do something just because someone told them what their body has to be like but i don't think that's why a majority of girls shave and guys don't shave.
I'm pretty sure it's because many females get harassed for having leg hair. It's weird, really. I'm glad you actually enjoy the state of having shaved legs. To be honest, I preferred my legs when they weren't hairy, it looked nicer. But I'm not going to shave it and the like because I don't care *that* much, nor do I care that much on anyone else.
that's weird I've never heard of a girl getting harassed. that's terrible. 0_0 if you like your legs to be shaved, that's cool.
I'm lazy for that :D but yeah, of course they get harassed because "it's not acceptable for a woman to have hairy legs". It's the same idea for why people bug me for how I hold the fork while I'm eating.
ohh well that's dumb. people just act like that because they're used to seeing something a certain way and when it's different they freak out
I guess they should just grow up?
yeah.
i don't mind leg hairs. It's natural. I've learned to cheat the system. Save only the parts that are showing. & don't shave in the winter. Cheap insillation.
I don't understand it either. Why should women have to shave it off, in order to be attractive to men, but men don't have to, in order to be attractive to women. I think women who do it, just themselves feel disgusting with it. I think men could certainly do it if they wanted, and some in fact do, but, I think they themselves just don't like it. They probably don't like the way it feels
No, I'm pretty sure guys don't do it because "only gay men and women do it" because "it's feminine". That, and they're lazy bums, haha. I think females do it because they're bullied into feeling ashamed of having leg hair, so they rather get rid of it.
Some do it because they're swimmers. It actually causes them to go slower in the water
Yeah, but most people aren't professional swimmers. Fair point, though.
Males generally have more body hair, therefore body hair is considered masculine.
Generally straight men aren't attracted to masculinity.
If you want to date hairy women, go ahead, nobody is stopping you.
I said leg hair. Even I don't have chest and back hair, haha.
Honestly, the more I see about it, the less I understand the BENEFITS of the conceptual polarization of "masculinity" and "femininity".
I understand what you're saying, no reason to get rude. But clearly you don't understand what I'm saying. Don't you hate it when people get upset over harmless comments
Body hair on women already, naturally is less and lighter than on men. It already is more feminine. Shaving it off completely is taking it to the extreme you can't justify that with masculinity and femininity in the evolutionary sense anymore.
There is nothing wrong with preferring women with no hair, as long as you understand that that is a cultural desire and by no means innate
@Izzy2102
I'm not upset over your comments, I just don't like you, since other comments you've made towards me have shown you to be utterly delusional.
And now you're being straight up retarded.
Woman A has more body hair than woman B, assuming other factors are equal, woman B is going to be considered more feminine, thus generally more attractive to straight males. This is why women shave off their body hair, because they want to be woman B, not woman A.
I don't remember ever talking to you.
There isn't a huge variety in women's leg hair, most men would never even pick up on it. So no, I don't see your point.
As I said it's ok to prefer women to have less no hair as long as you don't walk around thinking that is the way it's supposed to be. It's not. Only children have no body hair and by no body hair I mean only vellus hair
""going to be considered more feminine, thus generally more attractive to straight males""
I'm starting to think that despite the cultural indoctrination, I'm not sure I can just accept sweeping generalizations like that at face value.
I've always had a gripe with what is "deemed feminine" and "deemed masculine". These boxes are arbitrary. Most social behavior is independent from sex, and the primary factor in sexuality is biological sex and not much else.
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