In contemporary popular culture, it is
often stereotyped that men find blond women more attractive than women with
other hair colors. For example, Anita Loos popularized this idea in her 1925
novel Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Blondes are often assumed to have more fun; for
example, in a Clairol commercial for hair colorant, they use the phrase
"Is it true blondes have more fun?" Some women have reported they
feel other people expect them to be more fun-loving after having lightened
their hair. The "blonde stereotype" is also associated with being
less serious or less intelligent. This can be seen in blonde jokes. It is
believed the originator of the "dumb blonde" was an 18th century blonde
French prostitute named Rosalie Duthé whose reputation of being beautiful but
dumb inspired a play about her called Les Curiosites de la Foire (Paris 1775).
Blonde actresses have contributed to this perception; some of them include
Marilyn Monroe, Judy Holliday, Jayne Mansfield, and Goldie Hawn during her time
at Laugh-In.
Alfred Hitchcock
preferred to cast blonde women for major roles in his films as he believed that
the audience would suspect them the least, comparing them to "virgin snow
that shows up the bloody footprints", hence the term "Hitchcock
blonde". This stereotype has become so ingrained it has spawned
counter-narratives, such as in the 2001 film Legally Blonde in which Reese
Witherspoon succeeds at Harvard despite biases against her beauty and blonde
hair, and terms developed such as cookie cutter blond (CCB), implying
standardized blond looks and standard perceived social and intelligence
characteristics of a blond. Many actors and actresses in Latin America and
Hispanic United States seem to have Nordic features—blond hair, blue eyes, and
pale skin. |
| Reese Witherspoon |
In colloquial
French, "ma blonde" means "my girlfriend", regardless of
the color of the specific woman's hair. Such is for example the reference in
the name of the still-current 17th century chanson "Auprès de ma
blonde".
Blonde stereotype
The blonde
stereotype, the stereotypical perception of blond-haired women, has two
aspects. On one hand, over history, blonde hair in women has been considered
attractive and desirable. On the other hand, a blonde woman is often perceived
as making little use of intelligence and as a "woman who relied on her
looks rather than on intelligence." The latter stereotype of "dumb
blonde" is exploited in blonde jokes.
Background and
typology
Blonde hair has
been considered attractive for long periods of time in various European
cultures, particularly when coupled with blue eyes. This perception is exploited
in culture and advertising.
 |
| Grace Kelly |
Annette Kuhn
divides blonde stereotypes in cinema into three categories in The Women's Companion
to International Film:
The ice-cold
blonde: Kuhn defined it as "a blonde who hides a fire beneath an exterior
of coldness". She provided Grace Kelly, Veronica Lake, Kim Novak, Mae
Murray, and Eva Marie Saint as examples.
The blonde bombshell: Kuhn defined it as
"a blonde with explosive sexuality and is available to men at a
price". She provided Brigitte Bardot, Lana Turner, Jean Harlow, Joan
Blondell, Mae West, Barbara Eden, Marilyn Monroe, and Diana Dors as examples.
The dumb blonde: Kuhn defined it as "a
blonde with an overt and natural sexuality and a profound manifestation of
ignorance". She provided Jayne Mansfield, Marion Davies, Alice White,
Marie Wilson, and Mamie Van Doren as examples.
 |
| Marilyn Monroe |
Research
According to
psychological research, hair color is a relevant trait in the perception of an
individual’s intelligence and overall ability. In a study by Kyle and Mahler
(1996), the researchers asked subjects to evaluate photographs of the same
woman with brown, red, and blonde hair in the context of a job application.
After making sure that the hair color in all three conditions was rated as
looking “natural” (not dyed) in a pilot study, participants in Kyle and
Mahler’s study, both males and females, were asked to rate the applicant’s
capability based on the photograph for an accounting position.
The researchers
found that the blonde-haired applicant was rated as significantly less capable
than her brunette doppelganger. In addition, participants designated the female
applicant’s starting salary as significantly lower when she was depicted as a
blonde than when she was shown with brown hair.
 |
| Mamie Van Doren |
Although
associated with females, the application of the dumb blonde stereotype can be
applied to men as well. A study that looked at the CEOs of the London Financial
Times Stock Exchange’s (FTSE) top 500 companies investigated how hair color
could be a potential barrier to professional success. Because it has been shown
that blonde hair is associated with incompetency, it was hypothesized that
there would be fewer blonde CEOs among this group – a group of individuals that
is viewed as extremely competent – than was representative of the general
population. According to the CIA Fact Book at the time of the study, the
distribution of individuals who have naturally blonde hair in the UK is
approximately 25%, while the study found that only 25 (5%) of the 500 CEOs were
blonde. Furthermore, only two (0.4%) of these CEOs were women, neither of whom
happened to have blonde hair.
The question that
remains, then, is why is it that blondes are generally rated as less competent
than those who have other hair colors? One theory focuses on the feminization
of blonde hair, which can be seen by the overwhelming association of the dumb blonde
persona with females. This idea draws on the stereotype that females have a
lower psychometric intelligence than males.
Blonde jokes
There is a
category of jokes called "blonde jokes" that employs the dumb blonde
stereotype. It overlaps at times with the jokes that generally portray the
subject of the joke as promiscuous and/or stupid.
In fact, dumb
blonde jokes are overwhelmingly female-specific: according to an extensive
search in various publications and on the Internet, about 63% of dumb blonde
jokes are directed exclusively at females (compared to less than 5% that directly
referenced dumb blonde men). Consequently, blonde-haired individuals –
regardless of if they are male or female – may be viewed as less capable
because they are regarded as more feminine and thus less intelligent.
Blonde jokes have
been criticized as sexist by several authors, as most blondes in these jokes
are female, although male variations also exist. Research indicates that
because of this, men report being amused by blonde jokes significantly more
than women do.
Dumb Male Blonde
Jokes
Three business
men were sitting in a bar, drinking
and discussing
how stupid their wives were.
The first says,
"I tell you, my wife is so stupid. Last
week she went to
the supermarket and bought $300 worth
of meat because
it was on sale, and we don't even have
a fridge big
enough to keep it in!"
The second agrees
that she sounds pretty thick, but
says his wife is
thicker." Just last week, she went out
and spent $17000
on a new car" he laments, "and she
doesn't even know
how to drive!"
The third, a
blond male, nods sagely and agrees that
these two women
sound like they both walked through
the stupid forest
and got hit by every
branch. However,
he still thinks his wife is dumber." I
have to laugh
every time I think about it," he
chuckles.
"Last week my wife left on a vacation to Greece.
I watched her
packing her bags and she must
have taken at
least 5 boxes of condoms with her.
She doesn't even
have a penis!"
By Dimitri S
An
Irishman, a Mexican and a blonde guy were doing construction work on
scaffolding on the 20th floor of a building. They were eating lunch and the
Irishman said, "Corned beef and cabbage! If I get corned beef and cabbage
one more time for lunch I'm going to jump off this building." The Mexican
opened his lunch box and exclaimed, "Burritos again! If I get burritos one
more time I'm going to jump off, too." The blond opened his lunch and
said, "Bologna
The next day the Irishman opened his lunch
box, saw corned beef and cabbage and jumped to his death. The Mexican opened
his lunch, saw a burrito and jumped too. The blonde guy opened his lunch, saw
the bologna and jumped to his death as well.
At the funeral
the Irishman's wife was weeping. She said, "If I'd known how really tired
he was of corned beef and cabbage, I never would have given it to him
again!" The Mexican's wife also wept and said, "I could have given
him tacos or enchiladas! I didn't realize he hated burritos so much."
Everyone turned and stared at the blonde's wife. "Hey, don't look at
me," she said, "He makes his own lunch."
Source: unknown
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