Description
Book Synopsis The body is the canvas upon which women paint their secrets, their hopes and dreams, pain and disappointments. Hair has long played a role in the struggles for power, self-determination and autonomy--serving as a nonverbal language that represents women''s lives. However, pain, anxiety, racism, sexism and rigid beauty standards can too often underlie these stories. Modern events like the Black Lives Matter movement and the COVID-19 pandemic have exposed societal barriers that prevent the free and equitable expression of hair.
Although countless books and articles address body image, the personal psychology and the meaning of hair have been missing. This work empowers women to understand complex hair-head-heart connections, and pressures. Above all, the text emphasizes that hair is never just hair.
Table of Contents
- Table of Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Preface
- Introduction
- Hair Matters: Untangling the Universal and Unique
- 1. Every Woman's Issue
- 2. Women and Hair: A Love-Hate Story
- History: The Roots of the Past
- 3. It's Never Just Hair
- 4. Hair Throughout History
- 5. Hair, Sexuality and Gender Politics
- 6. Hair Economics
- Hair Stories: The Realities of Hair Today
- 7. Hair and Me
- 8. Our Mothers: Our Hair
- 9. "Hair doesn't get fat": Hair and Body Image
- 10. Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
- 11. What's Age Got to Do with It?
- 12. Tangles, Snarls and Transitions
- 13. "Good hair": The Dilemma of Non-White Hair in a White-Powered Culture
- 14. From the Roots to the CROWN
- 15. Hairapy or Therapy? Stylists as Essential Workers
- Conclusion: Connection, Connection, Connection
- Appendix: Questions and Exercises
- Chapter Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
