254 upvotes, 5 direct replies (showing 5)
View submission: What's something you never understood about the opposite gender?
It's not that hard to understand... Everywhere we look- on billboards, tv, video games, magazines, the Internet, etc.- women are mocked for looking anything but spectacular, and idolized for youth, vitality and beauty.
As we age, we see young, lithe, supple perfection EVERYWHERE. When we're made up with hair done and a coordinated outfit, people are nicer (kind to us, smiles, opening doors, buying our coffee etc) and are unkind when we don't. We can't leave the house without being judged. Men say they like the "no makeup" look, but...
Of COURSE we have a complex. If I wear no makeup, I continually get asked if I'm ill, have health problems or what's wrong. It's exhausting.
Comment by ThreadPainter316 at 09/03/2025 at 01:16 UTC
131 upvotes, 5 direct replies
Men don't actually like the no-makeup look. They just can't tell the difference between natural makeup and no-makeup. They think we naturally have long dark eyelashes, pink glossy lips, and no bags under our eyes.
Comment by MyLife-is-a-diceRoll at 09/03/2025 at 08:26 UTC
7 upvotes, 0 direct replies
my therapist got concerned when I didn't wear make up last time.
Comment by brandyfolksly_52 at 09/03/2025 at 14:42 UTC
3 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Yeah, and there's so much Photoshopping and airbrushing of images of women in ads, and even in the movies now, where they CGI away the actors' wrinkles. It's bad enough comparing ourselves to women who spend all day working out, getting beauty treatments, and eating personal chef-prepared meals.
Add to that, all of the plastic surgery models and actresses get; and then on top of that, the computer shrinks their waist and removes their wrinkles. The game is so rigged. But when we see these images of idealized beauty, we forget about all of the work and money and Photoshop that goes into looking that attractive, and we beat ourselves up for failing to live up to impossible standards.
Men are not exempt from this, either. Eating disorders in men and boys have risen dramatically in recent years: they now make up a third of diagnosed patients. I am not an expert in men's health, but I think the rise of the "short king" and "dad bod" memes are a cultural effort to combat these issues. It would be interesting to see the equivalent of a Dove Campaign for Real Beauty for men and boys.
Comment by apoliticalinactivist at 09/03/2025 at 09:44 UTC
-3 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Your conclusion is just one of many possibilities based on the data, heavily influenced by media, as you're already aware.
You going from your normal makeup routine to none is a substantial change, so of course people will ask, especially guys, who aren't able to tell makeup vs. none.
Go barefaced from the start or an extended period of time and you wont have that reaction. Immediately after a long vacation, do sunscreen only for a month and I bet you'll have much different reactions. And if you have the same reactions, then you may have to reevaluate your life, as you may be way too stressed or lacking sleep/nutrition/sun lol
Lastly, men are not one dimensional, they like the no makeup look for many reasons: represents a level of trust & comfort, confidence, the GF vibe, etc
Comment by [deleted] at 08/03/2025 at 23:32 UTC
-14 upvotes, 1 direct replies
[deleted]