“In Girl World, Halloween is the one night a year when a girl can dress like a total slut, and no other girls can say anything about it,” Cady Heron (“Mean Girls”).
Throughout the years, I have pulled off several awesome Halloween costumes, including a butterfly, Ariel, Wonder Woman, Violet from “The Incredibles” and Ariel again; the list goes on. Oct. 31 used to be a stress-free time when I would get to pick out my single costume from Party City and then fill my pillowcase with candy. The most stressful thing was convincing my dad not to eat my Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.
Now that I’m in college, there’s a lot more pressure and judgment surrounding festive attire — especially aimed at women. There’s no better way to address this double standard for men and women than with a feminist rant.
It’s all in the costume names
We all have been to Spirit Halloween on University Parkway, desperate for a last-minute costume. I can’t help but laugh at the differences between the names of the costumes aimed at men and women. For example, a men’s costume will read “Adult Lab Coat Doctor Costume,” and the female equivalent will say “Adult ‘Say Ahhh’ Costume” or “ER Hottie Nurse Dress Costume.”
Why do the men’s costumes have normal names and the women’s costumes have sexualized names? However, it’s not just the Halloween costume stores that sexualize and define women with derogatory labels.
Female sexuality is not evil
Generation Z (1997-2012) has been known to be a more open and inclusive generation that praises body positivity and the expression of sexuality. With that being said, I still hear the words “tramp,” “slut,” “whore” and “hooker” being used to negatively characterize women based on their costumes or even clothing choices. This language is extremely concerning — especially when I hear it coming from other women.
It is absolutely absurd to make conclusions about a woman’s personality, character and morals based solely on the way she dresses one night of the year (or any time of the year). So what if she is wearing fishnets or a short skirt? Just because Jessica decides to dress as an “ER Hottie Nurse” does not mean she is promiscuous or slutty.
Men do not even come close to receiving this kind of scrutiny. At several Wake Forest football and basketball games, I have seen male students with their shirts off and letters painted on their chests. No one labels them as skanks, so why do we shame women for simply showing cleavage?
It is interesting to see how far feminism has come, yet we are still stuck in the past. During the Salem Witch Trials, women and girls were accused of witchcraft and not men. This is because women were seen as inferior and weak beings who could not resist “the temptation of the devil.” People would mindlessly point fingers causing witches to be burned at the stake. But these weren’t devilish witches sent to corrupt the world — these were innocent women.
Even in 2024, society continues to be in this continuous destructive cycle that female sexuality is evil. It becomes a witch hunt where people believe their belittling comments put them on a superior moral high ground — Halloween is a prime example of this practice.
The cycle needs to stop.
The great double standard
Women are taught from a young age that sexuality is associated with guilt and shame. On the other hand, men are praised and celebrated by their peers for having sex.
Cornell University completed a study on the perceived promiscuity of men and women. Out of the 500 women surveyed, a majority perceived that a hypothetical woman who had more than 20 sexual partners was “less competent and emotionally stable, less warm and more dominant” compared to a hypothetical woman with only two partners.
In the same study, men were given a hypothetical man with nearly identical information to the abovementioned woman. The majority of male respondents said that a man with 20 partners was “more competent and emotionally stable” than one with two partners.
Just like a woman’s Halloween costume does not define her, neither does her number of sexual partners. It does not matter whether a woman wears a moo moo or wears lingerie. It does not matter whether a woman has zero sexual partners or 20. Women are much more than their sexuality.
Simply existing and having body parts should not be shameful. Sexual feelings and sexual orientation are just part of being human. Men are not the only people who get to be respected as human beings.
A new Halloween spirit
“Calling somebody else fat won’t make you any skinnier. Calling someone stupid doesn’t make you any smarter. And ruining Regina George’s life definitely didn’t make me any happier. All you can do in life is try to solve the problem in front of you,” Cady Heron (“Mean Girls”).
This Halloween, leave your “judgy-ness” in your dorm. Focus on spending time with your friends, eating candy, watching scary movies and having fun!
Ladies, life is too short to worry about how others perceive you. We’re young and in college! There are so many other things that matter in life! So wear whatever the hell you want on All Hallows’ Eve. Whether you wear lingerie and mouse ears or a zombie bride costume, you are awesome and beautiful.
Happy Halloween!
