Hair

Image: "HAIR" by Mukti Echwantono

"You cannot love your vagina unless you love hair." is the first sentence of monologue "Hair" in the The Vagina Monologues . Unfortunately for me, by simply reading this first sentence I had already begin to disagree with the author Eve Ensler. 


I detest body hair of any kind. I believe that hair only belongs on your head. Since the first time my mother handed me a razor when I was younger, I began to shave every part of my body that contained hair that I didn't want. I don't do this because I have been lead to believe that's what society finds most attractive, I do this because it makes me feel beautiful and the most confident. I do this just for me, the same way that Ensler feels the most beautiful and comfortable when she chooses not to shave. 


Ensler describes her her hair as "the leaf around the flower, the lawn around the house." and states that "You have to love hair in order to love the vagina. You can't pick the parts you want." Personally, I do not understand why you can't. Since the dawn of time, human beings have been finding ways to modify the appearance of their body. Whether their modification is as simply as shaving hair off of parts of their body, or as extreme as cosmetic surgery. Even things such as tattoos and piercings can be defined as "picking the parts that you want" this is something you choose to do to your body, not something that you are born with. If we as humans were not meant to modify out bodies, we wouldn't have found a way to. 


I realize discussing tattoos can be considered a bit off subject, so allow me to backtrack. I never mean to imply that Ensler is wrong for choosing not to shave her vagina. It is her personal choice how she wants to maintain a part of her. If she stated that in order for HER to love her vagina, she cannot shave it, I would not even be writing about this topic. I just dislike her very general statement of  "You cannot love your vagina unless you love hair." I love my body, but I don't love body hair, and there is no problem with that.


Some people could argue women should not shave their vaginas and instead they should leave their vagina in its natural state. I can respect this opinion, however I wonder how hypocritical it really is. Almost every woman I have ever met shaves her legs, and shaves under her arms, so if a woman ever told me that they will only leave their vagina in it's natural state, I would then ask why they find it acceptable to shave some parts, and not the others. 


I believe hair one of the most beautiful parts of the human body. My hair starts on the top of my head and cascades down past my ribcage. I call it my "fairy tale princess hair" and I have significantly cut it in at least three years. I have no intention of ever having short hair, If a boyfriend of mine ever asked me to cut my hair, that would be my equivalent to Ensler's husband asking her to shave her vagina. Unlike her however, I would not have given in. I love myself for who I am and I will not change myself for anyone. Through Ensler's experience with her husband she began to realize that she would never change herself for anyone as well.


So in a way, I suppose I do agree with her. You do need to love your hair, and love yourself. The difference between my opinion and hers, is that we are not talking about the same parts of the body where hair is found.