Femininity & Beauty Standards in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show

The difference in gender performance between men and women begins in middle school when young boys and girls start to go through puberty. For many girls, this change means sports become secondary to becoming a “proper lady” in every facet of life—education, dress, behavior, movement, talking. Girls are told that women are passive and fragile, and as they grow up, women become stuck in a spot of being a subject that cannot move above the patriarchal society and standards that have been placed on them because of their gender. Women who continue in sports do not use their bodies in the same way as men, often constricting themselves, not extending their reach as much as they physically are able to, and underestimating themselves more frequently. Erica Rand talks about athletes Kye Allums and Johnny Weir in relation to gender performance in their sports and what that means for masculinity and femininity. The performance of gender is a self-identified action that is ties less to social constructions and more on the individual’s agency. The Victoria’s Secret models and the Buzzfeed models that came out following the 2016 Fashion Show are performing femininity in particular ways that reinforce the construction of it.

Every November the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show draws in viewers to watch specially chosen models and Victoria’s Secret Angels model lingerie in angel wings and high heels. The Victoria’s Secret models are known for the high beauty standards required to be in show, including being in extremely great shape, very thin and that they must be taller than 5’10”. Some women tune in to see the products that are being modeled, but more tune in to see the models—how they walk, what they are wearing, how their make-up is done, how their hair is styled, how their stomach and thighs look in the limited clothing they are wearing. This year, the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show was aired on CBS on Monday, December 5, and featured a total fifty-four models, eleven of which are Angels.

            On Thursday, December 8, Buzzfeed released a video of “everyday women” being glammed up like the Victoria’s Secret models and walking a runway in their underwear. They chose women of different heights and sizes to put on lingerie and walk in front of a crowd of Buzzfeed employees. Every woman involved has her hair and makeup done by a professional and their outfits planned out. Though many of the women adhere to parts of the ideal image of femininity with flawless hair and makeup and freshly shaved bodies, several of them stand out for moments of opposition to the standard when they tell viewers that they are walking without having shaved armpits and legs or by showing tattoos. At the beginning, all of the women share their concerns of not looking like the models and not being confident in being so public in their underwear. However, by the end, all of the women feel good about themselves, are happy that they did it and want to get every woman to feel confident in herself regardless of size. Buzzfeed uses their space as a large media platform to share a message about positive body image through this video.

 

While Buzzfeed is sharing a message on body positivity at all sizes, Cosmopolitan magazine is sharing a message that the models embody what every woman should strive for. On Saturday, December 10, Cosmo released on Snapchat a list of fifteen of the Victoria’s Secret models with no makeup on. The list is not prefaced at all, nor does it have a description of when or where each picture was taken; however, each model featured is dressed well, and though the photos are not professional and the women are not wearing makeup, the photos are in good lighting and angled well to show the best features of each woman. This list is meant to show “everyday women” that the models are just like them, even if they are still ‘prettier’ by stereotypical beauty standards with big eyes, bright smiles, cleanly-shaped eyebrows, high cheekbones and full lips.

        In a time when beauty standards are being critiqued in more places than ever with social media making it more accessible to share, the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show was talked about more for both the good and the bad. The show features confident women showing off their perfect bodies, and it is good for other women to see that confidence. However, many comments about the show are about how there should be more diversity in the models and that the image being shown to the world should be more accessible like Buzzfeed worked to achieve on a smaller scale.