Personal Narrative-Aesthetic Appeal Of Hair

As an adolescent in a society that values aesthetic appeal as highly as it does, a significant portion of my time was spent gazing at my reflection. As I would fix my eyes on points of imperfection, I could not help but notice a disconnect; it was as though the person standing before was not me. My defining external characteristics did not match those of my internal personality, but how was I to resolve this? I did not even know who I was.
Hair. Any slight alteration of the strands of keratin protruding from one’s scalp can drastically change the public’s perception of any individual. The way it is sculpted on a human head can be an expressive externalization that is nearly impossible to ignore. Children differentiate genders by the length of one’s hair; even as a relatively masculine person, I am often asked, “Are you a boy or a girl?” Of course, I take …show more content…
The possibility of one day possessing a head full of them, however, seemed all too farfetched. I’ve known how to create them for years, giving singular locks to anyone who would allow me. I gave the hairstyle a trial run, but the hands of social rejection from my peers unraveled them as quickly as I had put them in. For the first time, I didn’t despise the strands of brown that hung from my head, but I held the opinions of others higher than my own. However, January of 2017, after experiencing perpetual dissatisfaction with the consistent image appearing before me in the mirror, marked a turning point in my journey for self-actualization. I put them in, one daily over the span of the month, caring for them in every way the internet advised me to. They are clean, healthy, and representative of my individuality. At this point in my life, the figure in the mirror and its individuality are interconnected in a way never previously thought possible. My sense of self is as solidified as it can be, independent from public