Last week I read an article in the New York Times on “Resting Bitch Face,” otherwise known as RBF. It talks about this “problem” some women have of, basically, how their face naturally defaults to something that isn’t a smile. The article, of course, makes it sound a lot worse than that, like these women are making faces that make them look “absolutely miserable” (January Jones) or “really angry all the time” (Anna Paquin, describing her own RBF), or “simultaneously bored, mad, and skeptical” (the author of the piece talking about herself). As someone who works in a still-male-dominated industry, I’ve been a victim of this idea for a long time. In my career, I have regularly been told to smile by men, or advised “Come on, it can’t be that bad,” or simply given an unfriendly answer to a question or request if it wasn’t asked with a smile (and there’s a voice that has to go with it, one that appeals appealingly, rather than simply asks, much less tells. I’ve even learned to employ the uptalk when necessary.
Resting Bitch Face
Resting Bitch Face
Resting Bitch Face
Last week I read an article in the New York Times on “Resting Bitch Face,” otherwise known as RBF. It talks about this “problem” some women have of, basically, how their face naturally defaults to something that isn’t a smile. The article, of course, makes it sound a lot worse than that, like these women are making faces that make them look “absolutely miserable” (January Jones) or “really angry all the time” (Anna Paquin, describing her own RBF), or “simultaneously bored, mad, and skeptical” (the author of the piece talking about herself). As someone who works in a still-male-dominated industry, I’ve been a victim of this idea for a long time. In my career, I have regularly been told to smile by men, or advised “Come on, it can’t be that bad,” or simply given an unfriendly answer to a question or request if it wasn’t asked with a smile (and there’s a voice that has to go with it, one that appeals appealingly, rather than simply asks, much less tells. I’ve even learned to employ the uptalk when necessary.