Beauty vs. Brains: The False Divide

by Katelyn Beaty

My workaday world—the world of Christian journalism in the Chicago suburbs—is a man’s world. Most of the editors at Christianity Today have historically and continue to be men, and at the conferences I attend in a given year, I am always in the gender minority.

But then there was the conference I went to last month. A conference of all women. Sixty of them. With dresses and heels and references to each other as “girls.” I was terrified.

In just a couple generations, women have attained more positions of leadership and influence than ever before. According to Hanna Rosin’s The End of Men, in 2009, for the first time in U.S. history, they held about half of the nation’s jobs—including 51 percent of all managerial/professional jobs, up from 26 percent in 1980. Over 60 percent of accountants are women; 45 percent of law firm associates are as well. The number of female breadwinners is growing, and the number of women pursuing higher education now outpaces men.

Yet at just the time when more women invest in their workplaces and positions of ministry with gusto, a powerful visual culture continues to root them in an age-old myth about themselves: They are how they look.

We all know the culprits: Cosmo and Vogue, pornography, beauty pageants, the music industry (thanks, Sinead), and the marketers peddling anti-aging creams and Botox injections and a multitude of other products that play to a collective fear of gaining weight and getting old. The culturally savvy among us can analyze these troubling forces to death, and the Christians among us cling to the belief that our eternal beauty is inward (1 Pet. 3:3–4). Still, on a gut level many women want to be physically beautiful, if not to attract men, then at least to keep apace other women.

At the conference last month, held at an immaculate day spa in the Texas Hill Country, I was surrounded by women who hit all the contemporary markers of beauty. The majority of them were thin and tall, with long hair, masterpiece makeup, and trendy clothing, much of which was provided by a personal styling service. Our conference swag bags included makeup samples and a jewelry catalog. And the bag itself? A gorgeous fair-trade orange-and-blue purse hand-sewn by a Rwandan woman named Ucumyo. While I had packed my most fashion-forward clothing (highlighting that I too value physical beauty), I felt drab and boring, like I had shown up at the prom wearing sweats and a scrunchie.

The women didn’t just perform femininity in their dress; they also talked it, effusing “Love you, girl” and “Oh my word” and “Can I just say, y’all are my favorite?” (Did I mention that we were in Texas?) We were channeling the spirit of Beth Moore, and it was more estrogen gathered in one room than I had experienced since the days of youth group. I freaked. And then I judged. Specifically, I judged that because the women were both beautiful and more traditionally feminine than me, they were shallow and uninterested in the world of ideas.

Where did this beauty-intelligence divide come from? Discussion over this false divide was in full swing after Yahoo! chief Marissa Mayer appeared in a Vogue photo shoot this September wearing Michael Kors and stilettos. Critics suggested that Mayer’s languid pose communicated a disempowering message—that corporate leadership “is too rigorous for skirts, and it might just be simpler and easier for everyone if [women] did our jobs by sitting still and looking pretty,” (Stephanie Smith, here at Q Ideas). Or, that her pose suggested professional women use their sex appeal to get ahead—Grace Chan, a media vice president, (told CNN, "If you want to be treated equal, you shouldn't take advantage of your physical assets. I don't want to get brownie points because I am attractive. I like to separate the fact that I am a woman and I am a professional." (As if women can choose to not be women on the job.)

If this false beauty-intellect dichotomy is strong now, it was surely stronger 60 years ago. Marilyn Monroe was frequently asked to pose in robes or swimsuits while holding a tome such as James Joyce’s Ulysses, as if to wink at the viewer: “Isn’t it silly that a gorgeous woman is holding a book?” To her tragic demise, Monroe became the archetype of the Dumb Blonde, even though some psychologists a report a positive link between beauty and intellect.

I co-founded Her.meneutics—a site dedicated primarily to women—at Christianity Today, and this false dichotomy between beauty and intelligence is one we’ve often wrestled with. We intentionally downplayed traditionally feminine cues in our design—no pastels, no floral patterns. But why did we assume pastels and flowers signaled “silly” or “unimportant”? How paradigm-shattering would it be to produce a website that looked like an Anthropologie catalog—and also delivered sharp analysis of the debt ceiling or religious freedom or the Bechdel test?

The women I met at the conference last month not only shattered these kinds of paradigms—but also my own ugly prejudice against beautiful women. They were articulate, curious about the world, deeply kingdom-oriented, and passionate about much more than hair and facial products. Physical beauty for them seemed important, but clearly (and rightly) not as important as ministry, leadership, and church unity. They gave me a new model for what it means to lead as a woman—not as a woman trying to hide their femininity, like so many women in leadership, especially in male-oriented workplaces, feel they must do.

We all face limits in time and energy, and every Christian woman must ask how much she is willing to spend getting ready each morning. We should consider whether we celebrate or denigrate our unique facial features and bodies, and whether beauty has become an idol. But intelligence can be an idol too, and I wonder if I have made it one in order to be taken seriously in a male-oriented culture. After the ladyfest last month, I’m ready to learn how to correctly apply eyeliner—and also to read more Kierkegaard. Who says we can’t do both?

Join Katelyn Beaty and eleven other presenters at our first Q Focus: WOMEN & CALLING
On Nov. 15th, 2013, Katelyn, Rachel Held Evans, Lauren Winner, Kathy Khang, Nicole Baker Fulgham, Rebekah Lyons and more will challenge you to develop a clear, informed position on how each women can best identify and fulfill her unique and God-given purpose in the world.

Though the event is SOLD OUT, we are opening up a limited number of overflow seats for a discounted rate.

If your schedule doesn't allow you to be with us in person, we still want to share the experience with you. Sign up for our live stream package and join us wherever you are!

Editor's note: Her.meneutics is a partner of Q Focus: Women & Calling.

Image by JFXie.

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