Modern Beauty and the Prisoner's Dilemma

      In a feminist theory course last semester we discussed the tensions present in modern narratives on women’s liberation. While some hail individual choice and self-expression as the ultimate indication of an equal society, others recognize that although the power of decision is crucial for women, that does not indicate that all choices are feminist choices. Consider the topic of makeup, or plastic surgery. While we have come to a general conclusion that cosmetic enhancements may be a mode of self-expression that is powerful for the individual, that does not mean that there should not be serious considerations of the social environment that may put pressure on women to look a certain way.
I realize now that the conclusion I kept nearing last term was that makeup (or Botox, or plastic surgery) can likely create a prisoner’s dilemma. This is not a black and white situation, for I am not discussing the makeup artist but rather a woman who would rather not wear makeup but fears she must, for example in the workplace, to look presentable. The individual woman’s choice is based upon the choices of other individuals by which she is surrounded. Makeup, Botox, and plastic surgery are all time consuming, expensive, and range from being potentially harmful to the skin to dangerous if procedures go awry. Though this may seem simplistic, consider the idea that, to an extent, women have settled into a prisoner’s dilemma situation in which all are defecting to spend X minutes a day putting on makeup before work, but if no one did then no one else would feel as though they “have” to, and those minutes could be spent more freely. 
       The dominant strategy arises here because as less and less people wear makeup and we arrive at a point in which all women are wearing nothing on their face, then one woman would feel inclined to do so, as it would make her more attractive. Therefore, whether Person A chooses to wear makeup or not wear makeup, it is likely that Person B is better off wearing makeup, so we reach a state in which everyone may begin to follow suit. This same logic is applicable for plastic surgery or botox. This may result in other effects, such as the way our society accepts sexist ageism or the fact that cosmetic enhancements have been shown to increase popularity on dating apps such as BeautifulPeople. The consequences show this is something to consider.