A person’s grooming changes for multiple reasons.
Consider how you, your family members, acquaintances, media personalities or people in general differ in their appearances from the recent past to over an individual’s years. I believe that the reasons for such differences stem from peoples’ efforts to present a variation to what their grooming expresses or what their personal circumstances influence.
We notice an individual’s apparel, size, and facial features but we ultimately go back to their head. We see expressions and hear words, all indicators of information being communicated; be it friendly or otherwise. Since a large component of what we see deals with a person’s head or more specifically their hair, this hormonally-influenced addition to a human’s body has an immense impact on how we regard ourselves and others.
One only needs to consider the entertainment and sports industries to notice the hair styles prominent in the males’ beards, their several-days’ stubble, or countless females’ long flowing locks. Consciously or not, we witness multiple examples of how a character’s hair enhances our acceptance of that individual. Therein lays the popularity of hair styles; they are mainly choices and they convey messages.
Two weeks ago, my wife and I were in Truro, New Glasgow, and Antigonish when I took note of hair styles and particularly beards. Since this letter has limited space, I shall deal only with facial hair.
From a personal perspective I admire a beard when, to my preference, it is groomed and not resembling a wild growth like a man just returned from the frontier. A maintained beard takes time, energy, grooming, and costs (scissors, clippers, brush, etc.). It sends a specific message. A wild beard displays something else such as a reflection of abandonment, or maybe a rebellious attitude.
Having stated my before-mentioned thoughts, I must offer several snippets of the significance of beard for certain beliefs as found in The Significance of Beards Throughout History: Advanced Dermatology: “For ancient Greeks beards were signs of virility, manhood and wisdom.” In the faiths of Islam and Judaism, beards are recognized as being symbolic of religious beliefs. Also within its material the site referenced a: “lumbersexual movement which represents rugged masculinity, environmentalism and rebellion against 9-to-5 office jobs.”
As I reflect to my adolescent years (the late 1960’s), longer hair and facial growth had become popular among many of my age group. The Beatles had arrived in North America and the Vietnam war was being revealed for its futile efforts. I thought hair was my safe way to stand out in my high-school graduation year, therefore I decided to grow sideburns to the base of my earlobes.
I thought I was cool but my principal did not. He took me into his office, gave one of my new sideburns a tug and stated “These will be gone or you will be out of here.”
Since I considered my education important, and I recognized my sideburns as just facial hair, I shaved them off before I returned to my educational pursuits. I occasionally reflect back on that educator’s mandate and think how my life would have been seriously revamped had I told him to take a hike, all for facial hair that I have grown many times since.
When I see facial hair I recognize it as just one component that is being displayed, hopefully by personal choice and not due to an unfortunate skin aliment. I do form an opinion on its style which, like its bearer, I am at liberty to talk about as he is allowed to grow whatever he prefers.
It takes weeks and additional months to grow and groom a beard. It takes only minutes to remove it until the next time, should the person decide he wants another.
At the end of the beard’s day, it is hair today and gone tomorrow.
Ray Bates
Guysborough (Sedabooktook)