the higher the heel , the heightened the fight

The fight for women’s rights has been strenuous and ongoing for centuries. The desire to be seen as something more than a pretty accessory to a man has been a main factor when working towards equality. Women are typically belittled and degraded by their choices — specifically fashion choices. Society has connotated certain articles of clothing as being improper and unjust for a “classy” woman to wear. Stilettos have received some of the most controversies over time as they are viewed as a tool for promiscuity and a symbol for everything a woman should not be.

The stiletto heel first emerged in the 1930s, a time when the main purpose for women was domesticity — looking properly while caring for their families and homes. The male-created shoe was made to showcase a woman’s tiny foot. Additionally, stilettos im prove one’s posture and contort the woman’s body. Pushing your chest forward and butt outward, the stiletto was created to contort a woman’s physique. This is no surprise as women were viewed as nothing more than pretty objects during the time the heel first appeared. Stilettos were not popularized until the 1950s, following the Second World War. In the 1950s, more women were seen wearing stilettos than not. While the role of the major ity of women had not progressed much since the 30s, the stiletto became a much more inte gral part of a woman’s day-to-day life.

The 1950s was the epitome of women being depicted as pretty, poised and silent. Women would dress up on a daily basis to do mundane tasks such as grocery shopping or household chores. Women were expected to not only take care of their homes and children but to look attractive in the eyes of the male gaze while doing so.

They were not respected for their efforts but were sexualized, heavily due to the contortion of their bodies by wearing the stiletto.

According to The New York Times, the sexual appeal given by the stiletto was labeled as erotic and shunned in the 1960s. Stilettos were viewed as suggestive, something the domestic women idolized during this time should never be. While women used them as a tool of empowerment, dressing nice and feeling good, the opinions of men who felt the heel was promiscuous left women having to pack their stilettos away.

In the late 1970s, the stiletto received a more erotic connotation as people correlated the heel with pornography. Seeing women enjoying their sexuality and in some cases being dominant left men uncomfortable as they were

by SAMANTHA KEATING layout by ADRIANNE HUTTO

because it is a woman’s choice and she worked so hard to have the ability to make that choice. Not only are stilettos a symbol of all women have worked for but they embody the strength of women. By no means is being a woman easy, but we still manage to persevere and be accomplished, as Ginger Rogers once said, “There’s nothing a man can do that I can’t do better and in heels.”

1930s - Stiletto heel emerges for the first