The Paradox of Choice: Sexism and Female Appearance

They say it doesn’t matter

What other people see

That the only voice to listen to

Is the one inside of me

They say that I should love myself

No matter shape or size

And while that may be true, The World

Sees Me with different eyes

The friends I make, the jobs I take,

The many other things at stake

Force me to change the way I look

For other people’s sake

I stand before the mirror

Saying that I do not care

It shouldn’t matter what I do

With makeup or my hair

But still I know that certain doors

Will always close for me

If I look a certain way

Which option sets me Free?

The time, the money, effort spent

A burden men don’t have to bear

A burden so invisible

That most forget it’s there

What I’ve learned is that it is

A Paradox of Choice

To choose Myself or what I Want

And Look to please that voice

#feminism #poetry #feministpoetry #sexism #patriarchy #smashthepatriarchy #beautystandards #bodypositivity #makeup #beauty #freedom #glassceiling