Dirt

 

Dirt

The image above depicts a woman who has gone through a transformation, or what most people would probably call it, a makeover. The image of her on the left depicts a nerdy schoolgirl. She has glasses on as the directors try to depict someone who enjoys scholarly work and is most likely wrapped up in their studies. In addition to this, the woman is not what society would call “pretty.” Her hair is a mess, curls strung everywhere and clearly not taken care of. As well as the small barrettes holding the wispy strands of her hair out of her eyes. It is clear that they are trying to show someone who does not take their “self care” very seriously. She is not weaning makeup which is not societally pleasing to the eye and her eyebrows are unkempt. Another sign of someone who most likely does not think about their physical appearance much. Finally, the last thing of note about the image to the left is the woman's facial expression. There is a look of disgust and confusion on her face, making the contrast to the other image starkly different. Now, on the right side, we see a woman who looks as if she could be a professional. Her hair is straightened and parted off to the side with none of it covering her face. She is not wearing any sort of eyewear to contrast the previous photo and her eyebrows have been plucked or threaded, as society likes them to be. She is also wearing a full face of makeup, which can be seen through the lids of her eyebrows being darker, her bright complexion in the face, and ruby red lips. She is also shown smiling, something women are always told to do because it is “unappealing” to do anything else. 

In Douglas’ article, Purity and Danger, she talks about the concept of dirt. Dirt meaning something we have labeled as “dirty” is therefore something we as a society outlaw and look down upon. But what really constitutes something as “dirty?” Staying with the theme of dirt, every society has different rules to things such as hygiene. Depending on these different rules and rituals, people coming from different societies or communities may have different outlooks on it. What one person believes to be gross could be normal and natural to others. The ways in which we are supposed to execute these specific rules we have created are also different. However, societies police these rules and look at people who disobey them to be the outsider. Not conforming to social rules is in turn, “dirty.” Douglas utilizes this metaphor to talk about societies' need to conform to one another. If someone is not following these specific rules, they are “impure” or even “dangerous.” Her entire argument is centered around the conforming of societies and the need to conform for other people to know what is acceptable or safe. In turn, people within society look for outsiders or people who do not conform to the rules and deem them humans who are not acceptable to the group.

Dirt is a concept we as a society have to decide what it means. When thinking about the insider/outsider concept, the idea of gender norms came to mind. Especially with women, they are supposed to be presented in a particular way, usually for the male gaze, especially in television or movies. The image above depicts a woman on the left, who can be posed with the metaphor “dirt” in this example, whereas the woman on the right is the rest of society. It also helps to know that both these women are the same person. It is then interesting to see someone who conformed to her gender role in order to be seen as a person and not as “dirt.” In the movie, it is shown that the woman is treated differently when she does not act like a “lady,” as society wants her to. It is difficult to break out of these stereotypes of insider or outsider, but for women, it is usually conforming to the ideal image of a woman. Although these women who aren’t conforming to their ideal images are not anything close to “dangerous” or “impure.” Society will always look at them a bit differently due to the fact that women are expected to look and act a certain way. It is interesting too to see this woman's personality barely change. All she had to do is fit the appearance society wanted to see her in to be truly seen by the insider group. This is exactly how social groups work. Anyone outside of their specific group will be looked at as another.