It was Kylie Jenner’s first appearance at the Met Gala, and her big night seemed to have gone perfectly. The 18-year-old fashionista was a stunner in a silver, see-through Balmain gown. But all was not smooth as she later took to snapchat to reveal how her embellished dress left red gashes on her legs, and her heels turned her feet purple. Jenner thought it was worth it though. Fashion before comfort? Begrudgingly granted. But how far is too far?
Some fashion blogs and sites seem to think Kylie’s physical discomfort indeed was worth it, given that she looked like a dazzling diva at the end. But we’re basically saying it’s alright for women to be in pain, as long as the end result is pleasing to the (male) gaze.
The infamous “Kylie-Jenner-lip-challenge” last year also took the internet by storm. It was a peculiar trend where people stuck their mouth in shot glasses to get fuller lips like Jenner, and very nearly lost nerve sensation.
Though some men too participated in this challenge, these bizarre standards of beauty seem to apply largely to women. It’s safe to say the men at the Met Gala did not lose blood circulation in their feet. Fashion is painful, and women’s bodies are subjected to this pain.
The truth is that nobody really cares what women wear or how they look, as long as they’re tormented enough for the multi-billion dollar beauty industry to be kept going. We keep making allowances for physically agonising fashion trends, and before we know it women are binding their feet or squeezing into corsets again, and poor Kylie Jenner has to wear a dress that makes her bleed.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)