A lab coat—a sparkly pink lab coat. One of these things sounds like it belongs in a Barbie movie, and the other sounds like it belongs in a real lab. But why can’t these two ideas coexist? What is it about pink and sparkles that seem unsuitable for a lab?
Well, pink and sparkles are pretty heavily associated in our society with being “feminine” and often this hyperfemininity is not allowed to coexist with intelligence. Given the historical treatment of women, it’s unsurprising that we find ourselves in this situation, with the introduction of women in the workforce being fairly recent and long-standing stereotypes and expectations of gender roles created by and for men. This exclusion of women from higher education has also perpetuated this lack of unique femininity in the workforce. Men have almost always occupied leadership and high-paying roles, so for women to break the glass ceiling, they had to act like the men did to be respected. As a result, we see how femininity has been pushed out of the workforce.
When we think of nerdy girl scientists, we think of women as caricatures like Amy from The Big Bang Theory. I think that’s why the movie Legally Blonde was so impactful to me as a kid. I had always visualized high-education jobs as very serious and stuffy. But when Elle Woods brought her unique bubbly blonde charm to the courtroom, I realized that maybe appearing intelligent didn’t have to be all briefcases and boring ties.
Maybe that’s why for a long time, the world didn’t respect Taylor Swift as a businesswoman, and instead saw her just as a slutty pop princess. There’s also a stigma around women acting or dressing provocatively, one that doesn’t read intelligence; whereas for men, boasting sexual prowess and similar things are often a mark of their success.Â
Unfortunately, the cycle is constantly repeating and perpetuating these masculine ideals so when young girls don’t see role models that look like them in places that they want to be, it can be disheartening. A spark that could have lit up the whole world might have been stamped out and we wouldn’t know it.
The recent #womeninmalefields trend has empowered women to reflect on their place in society. And honestly, there is starting to become more of a push for women to embrace things that are typically feminine and adopt them in powerful positions, like astronaut Kellie Gerardi. She has taken to social media to post inspirational clips, showcasing her embraced femininity and skills as an incredible astronaut.
It’s amazing how much the world has changed, from women being banned from getting an education to being looked down upon and forced to masculinize themselves to fit in, today those things are slowly shifting. Hopefully, more girls in the present and future feel that it is their right to be intelligent women, whilst being true to their femininity and unique flair.
Keep sparkling ladies!
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