Body hair, almost everyone has it. Some more than others and in more places too. But when did body hair become a symbol for unhygienic, dirty, and gross? There used to be a time when body hair on both men and women was completely normal. Men had hairy chests and women left their pubic hair in its natural state. But today both of those are big no – no’s in society. Women have to have their armpits shaved, their legs silky and stubble free, and their pubic hair either gone or pretty much gone. Men are now self-conscious about their chest hair and even to an extant their facial and armpit hair. When did body hair become associated with being unclean? In high school I remember watching a fellow peer give a presentation about the importance of personal hygiene for a speech class. She told the women and the girls in the audience that they had to shave their armpits and legs because it was important to their hygiene. I don’t recall her saying the same thing to the males in the class.

Peer pressure seems to be a common reason for people to shave or get rid of their body hair. I can remember the summer going into middle school. I was only 11 years old and I asked my mom if she could buy me a razor because I wanted to shave my legs. My other female friends were doing it and I felt like I needed to do it too. She told me “don’t start shaving your legs. Once you do, it will be a hassle for the rest of your life.” But did I listen? Of course not. I wanted to be like all my friends. I also felt the same type of peer pressure when it came to my bush. One day in high school my friends were talking about the different ways to get rid of it by shaving, waxing, and using that lovely Nair product. So I went home and decided I would remove it all. I hated it. I remember I didn’t even try to get it all. My skin became irritated and itchy. I can remember thinking “Why do women do this?!” I guess some say it’s a personal preference. Others say they do it for their partners. Since that day I decided I would just keep it neat and trimmed, still giving in slightly to that peer pressure.

But I wasn’t the only one in my family who felt pressure to get rid of their body hair. My brother used to shave his chest hair. He took after our dad, lots of dark body hair everywhere. I’ve always wonder what his reasoning was for getting rid of it. Did his friends talk about it around him and he felt pressure to shave? Or was it the media and its representations of men that influenced him to get rid of it all? I’ve never asked him why he did it. My feelings about body hair have changed a lot in the last few years. I think it’s important that we have it, otherwise our bodies wouldn’t grow it. But I respect the people who make the conscious decision to get rid of their chest, leg, arm, pubic, or any other type of body hair they may have. I wonder if we will ever see a return to natural body hair being normal in society. Or maybe in the future everyone will shave off all their hair, who knows.