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Molly Simpson
Dr. Cheryl Caesar
WRA 140-007
25 February 2015
Gender Evolution of Makeup
Imagine you are walking down the street one day and as you pass by a man, you notice
hes wearing makeup. Now, tell me, what is your first impression of this stranger? If you are like
most people, you would think he is strange and abnormal for being a male that wears makeup. As
popular as this thought may be now days, it wasnt always like this. Believe it or not, makeup
was originally created to be used by both males and females on an everyday basis. Why did this
ideal change so drastically? Well, makeup made the transition from being used by both genders
as a social norm to being used mainly by females for the purpose of beauty because throughout
history, makeups uses have greatly changed, which eventually helped to create the beauty
ideal, thus making its main purpose the enhancement of beauty.
Tracing the origins of makeup can go all the way back to 100,000 BCE where its most
basic uses were for environmental camouflage, to evoke fear in enemies and for many spiritual
reasons (Pitts-Taylor, 142). Some of the more well-known people to have used makeup in ancient
times were the Egyptians and those of the Middle Eastern cultures. They would wear kohl, or eye
paint, which was used not only to enhance the appearance, but functioned medicinally as a
method of protecting the eyes from the glare of the sun and from dust and particles that may have
caused infection and disease (Pitts-Taylor, 143). Along with protection, makeup was also used
to represent class status in ancient times. The wealthier upper class had a wide array of makeups
and perfumes, while the poorer lower class could not afford any. Different colored body paints

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were also used to signify diverse meanings. Red body paint often symbolized blood and fertility,
thus women in some cultures would wear this during ceremonies. Black body paint, on the other
hand, was associated with ideas of night and darkness, as well as virility and aggression,
therefore men often wore this during certain ceremonial rituals (Pitts-Taylor, 142).
As time progressed, different cultures still allowed the use of makeup by both genders,
but its uses became more diverse. Males and females still wore makeup as a form of protection,
but they began to wear it more often, especially for events like courting rituals and social
gatherings. A variety of cosmetics and oils were also applied to the bodies of the deceased in
order to preserve and prepare them for the afterlife (Pitts-Taylor, 142). As cosmetics became
more diverse, this established the division of gender specific customs. For example, in ancient
Greece, cosmetics were primarily for males because women who wore makeup were
condemned as harlots and seductresses (Pitts-Taylor, 143). In correlation, Greek women who
did not wear makeup were considered pure.
Diverging cultural viewpoints on the use of cosmetics, in turn, caused more and more
people to begin to see makeup as something that could not only change their looks completely,
but enhance their own natural look. This aided in the unconscious creation of the beauty ideal
which drove the use of makeup to the next level. For instance, pure white skin, a demarcation of
the leisure class, was the most important feature of Roman beauty (Olson, 61-70). Because of
this, Roman women required whitening makeup in order to fit that perfect model. They knew
that the lead used in their face whiteners was poisonous but this did not hinder their view of how
important achieving this white skin was. Then when it came down to Roman males, Two of the
more acceptable practices were the light use of certain perfumes and moderate hair removal. A
man removing too much hair was viewed as effeminate, while removing too little made him

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seem unrefined (Stewart, 82-95). Having such contradicting standards for each gender opened
up the door for makeup to make a complete turnaround as to strictly apply to females.
These gender differences in the uses of makeups, perfumes and personal grooming did
not just exist within the Romans for they evolved and ended up spreading around the globe until
a fine line was established, forging makeup into a female specific exercise. A large part of this
was, again, due to the creation of the ever changing beauty ideal and the fact that women
always see the need to fulfill it. Even today, women constantly feel like they need to wear
makeup in order to appear attractive and to feel beautiful, while masculine virtue has been
deemed inherent and thus physical adornment is seen as unnecessary (Pitts-Taylor, 144). As
makeup has evolved through time, this pressure for women to feel beautiful comes from the fact
that Beauty was deemed a duty for women, and those who did not conform to the beauty ideals
of the day were sometimes seen as immoral and impure (Pitts-Taylor, 145).
Ultimately, makeup has been transformed entirely because it has been exposed to
so many different cultures and has gained countless assorted uses for males and females
throughout history. Cosmetics today are all about the pursuit of beauty and how every woman
strives to have that picturesque, clear, youthful face. Even though some people may argue that
makeup has become a practice solely for females because societal pressures have made men feel
inferior if they choose to wear it, that is not accurate because some men do use cosmetics
frequently and are still confident in themselves. They have no question of their importance just
because they may choose to wear a bit of concealer for that one stubborn pimple. On that note,
the creation of the beauty ideal due to the changes in the uses of makeup throughout history is
the genuine cause of makeup transitioning from being used by both genders as a social norm to
being used mainly by females for the purpose of beauty. So, step back for a moment and think

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about this: Should someones gender really play a part in this when all they are trying to do is
build up more self-confidence with a little bit of help?

Works Cited

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Olson, Kelly. Dress and the Roman Woman. New York: Routledge, 2008, pp. 61-70.
Pitts-Taylor, Victoria. Cultural Encyclopedia of the Body, Volumes 1-2. Westport, CT, USA:
Greenwood Press, 2008. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 20 February 2015.
Stewart, Susan. Cosmetics & Perfumes in the Roman World. Gloucestershire: Tempus, 2007, pp.
82-95.