Vanity

[raz]

So, I'm asking for other opinions on this seeing as Vent is going off in other directions. I was recently watching an episode of Joan of Arcadia in which the main character took a make up class, realized her and her friend in the class were becoming vain, called everyone else in the class vain, quit the class and wore the same clothes 2 days in a row in protest.

I just watched the show, and with her make up on, I was like, "fuck, she's hot." Who cares if it's make up? To me, wearing the same clothes for 2 days and not showering was taking the protest to the extreme. So, you dislike makeup, quit the class and go back to being normal. Screw the protest. I mean, relying on the makeup for confidence, yeah, that's messed up.

Vanity is defined as excessive concern, but excessive is relative, defined by boundaries that it seeks to upset. I'm just missing some of the reasoning on how some people use the wrong situations as examples of vanity. Going over the above example a few times, I can understand how it changed the main character for the duration of the episode, but I'm looking for further discussion.

 

[nolla]

Some people like to paint paintings, some people like to paint their faces.

I'm not sure what you are asking... Umm... well, I will say this. As the norm these days seems to be the make-up, it often strikes me as "hot" to see someone who I'm used to see with make-up, without it. They are more lively. Especially someone who used to have strong make-up will have expressions that were never there with the make-up.

 

[d4mselfly]

I'm not sure what the question is here, but on the general subject of vanity—

I wear eye makeup and I consider myself mildly vain, at least for an NT, and wear it for the same reason I wear heels on occasion: I like it. The vanity doesn't disappear with the makeup or shoes, though — they're just manners by which it can be expressed. I do agree that it need not only be excessive, though.

 

[Totenkindly]

So, I'm asking for other opinions on this seeing as Vent is going off in other directions. I was recently watching an episode of Joan of Arcadia in which the main character took a make up class, realized her and her friend in the class were becoming vain, called everyone else in the class vain, quit the class and wore the same clothes 2 days in a row in protest.

I think this was more a matter of self-expression and following one's individual values, but I don't think it really says anything about whether a particular behavior is generally vain or not.

(In other words, the makeup is the tangible sticking point she used to take a stand in order to affirm herself as a moral and substantial person in her own eyes. The protest is part of that "rebellion against the norm.")

Generally, if you think you're getting vain by wearing too much eye makeup, you just stop wearing so much eye makeup. The add'l action (the protest) must be serving some other psychological purpose.

I wear eye makeup and I consider myself mildly vain, at least for an NT, and wear it for the same reason I wear heels on occasion: I like it. The vanity doesn't disappear with the makeup or shoes, though — they're just manners by which it can be expressed. I do agree that it need not only be excessive, though.

Not even sure I'd consider it vain (although only you can really determine that for yourself.) What I mean is that, in general, it's a healthy thing for people to take some pride in their appearance and invest in what they look like. It only seems vain when it's prioritized consistently above other things that are more enduring.