Sexy nurse or full body orange Lorax suit? The two opposites all girls are presented as Halloween creeps up. Apparently, you can only be either sexy or funny when Halloween rolls around, God forbid you try to be both. Women who choose to wear a revealing costume somehow appear less worthy to those who dress up comedically. But why is this?
The problem is that slut shaming has become so widely accepted, especially during this time of year. As a girl you must both be confident enough to wear a revealing costume; whilst also being judged for that fact. The same scrutiny doesn’t apply to boys on Halloween, choosing to wear whatever Amazon costume arrives with express delivery the day of.
Maybe the famous Mean Girls quote: “Halloween is the one night a year when a girl can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it,” isn’t true at all. Even the movie itself is an example of this strange double standard that arises from Halloween, with Cady showing up to the party dressed as “a scary ex-wife” completely missing the unwritten rule of a sexy costume—if a boy dresses similarly no one would bat an eye. Despite this being a fictional example, the phenomenon still stands: the scrutinization of women wearing a new costume.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with dressing as a sexy mouse, an Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging-esc olive, or an orange creature who speaks for the trees. The issue lies in the fact that slut shaming is almost an accepted fact of Halloween, so wear that ‘Naughty Policewoman’ outfit or biblically accurate Ant and Dec costume if that’s what you so wish.
Image by Charlotte Dorward (@_twostepsforward) for The Student
