Today, my roommate came home in a tizzy. She insisted I read an article in the Reporter called "Bug-eyed Beauties," and asked if she was crazy for being angry. An opinion piece on giant sunglasses? I consider myself a fairly level-headed person, and I was fully prepared to call her crazy.
After a quick read, I couldn't believe it - the article got to me. The article was condescending, sexist and somehow also managed to be just plain lazy.
Much as women loved to be grouped together and talked down to, the sentence "Ladies, it's time for you to stop wearing those ridiculous sunglasses," put me on edge immediately. It seemed the article's author, Kyle Monson, was confused.
His premise was that these stylish sunglasses, covering an inch more of the wearer's face than regular sunglasses, obscure a woman's identity so much that she is reduced to everything below the neck. He can't help but wonder: don't women want to be noticed? Or are they trying to keep men away? Sometimes they dress like they want men's attention, and sometimes they don't; what is this world coming to?
Let me clear something up for you, Kyle. Women don't always dress for the attention of men. Many don't pick out their outfit wondering, "Will this attract the appropriate amount of male interest?" Simply put, women aren't that shallow or that thoughtful. Normally, they wear what looks good to them.
I don't wear my big sunglasses as a statement of independence or to attract the favor of men. I find oversized sunglasses to be classic and iconic. If I pair that with a little black dress, I feel like Audrey Hepburn in "Breakfast at Tiffany's."
And while I don't wear pants with "juicy" on the butt, I assume it's because I'm a slave to trends, not because I'm desperate for men to check out my ass.
"Us guys seem to be backed into a corner here and are doomed to snub all our girl friends while at the same time demeaning them as we check out their asses."
Really, Kyle? That's how you're demeaning women? Not reducing our identity to how we look to men? Let me back up for a moment.
While I've addressed some of this to Kyle directly, I don't really think he's some misogynist pig who meant to tell women how to dress if they really want a man. But that's what's particularly bad about this article - it's lazy (sorry Kyle).
It seems as though he thought of some issue that bothered him somewhat, sat down and wrote an uninspiring rant without talking to one person or finding one fact. Even in an editorial or in commentary, a writer should have something, anything, to lend him as an authority on the subject he's writing about.
What you have is a nonsensical article filled with veiled offensive language toward women and a ridiculous premise. I know it seems like I'm taking a light-hearted article too seriously, but our campus newspaper should be held to some standard. Articles should be informative and make readers think with new and interesting perspectives. It should not just be a platform for the journalists' pet peeves.
And now I can't help but wonder, isn't it a popular fashion for men to wear large aviator sunglasses? Keep it up guys, you look great.
Colleen Flaherty
MSU student
Oversized sunglasses show style, not identity
Published: Thursday, April 29, 2010
Updated: Tuesday, May 11, 2010 13:05
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