By Nandita Chennakrishnan

Regardless of whether you’re one who gives in to the Halloween spirit and goes out of your way to get yourself the perfect costume, you’ve probably noticed the stark difference between men’s and women’s Halloween costumes. A quick Google search for women’s Halloween costumes will guarantee many options consisting of very little, skin-tight fabric, which are often perceived as “sexy” or “slutty”. These clothing options may as well be objectifying women instead of showing society how multifaceted women actually are. Having said that, any mildly feminist person would wholeheartedly agree with the fact that women should be able to dress to their liking. Are women’s Halloween costumes, in actuality, degrading women in society, or empowering them to deconstruct society’s unrealistic standards towards them?

The shift from “scary” to “sexy” costumes for girls as they grow up can negatively impact them, especially in the workforce. Many Halloween costumes for women are sexualized versions of occupational uniforms. It wouldn’t be difficult to find a costume for a “sexy nurse” or “sexy policewoman”. This weirdly inaccurate portrayal of occupation-related women’s costumes can entail the lack of gravity for women in the workforce. The double standard between men’s and women’s Halloween costumes, notably in occupational costumes, defeats the purpose of the feminism movement and depicts women as “sex symbols” in the workforce. 

To put it simply, if a woman was to wear revealing Halloween costumes due to societal pressures, it would be considered as degradation. In an era where social media validation seems to bring more joy than an own individual’s happiness, these pressures are all the more prevalent. Dressing a certain way just to receive an influx of likes and comments can be demeaning, especially if the woman does not feel comfortable in what she is wearing. Moreover, wearing something that a woman does not feel pleasant in on Halloween, to avoid being the Cady Heron of the party further degrades women, and puts more pressure on them to dress a certain way. Escaping this pressure to dress sexy can be extremely challenging for many women.

Equally as important is the negative impact these sexy costumes can have on women’s mental health and self-esteem. The pictures found on costume packages and social media set an unrealistic image for many women. All women do not have the same body type nor do they wish to be scantily dressed on Halloween. Continuous exposure to such images can make women that do not fall into the range of model-like figures feel less confident and beautiful. Furthermore, the inability to find other costumes that women may feel more comfortable in will shatter their confidence. These consistent provocative Halloween costume images all over the internet not only set an ideal body type or look for women, but also for men. Sexy costumes have become the ideal costume for women, and wearing modest costumes may result in being called a prude. In a patriarchal society viewed through the eyes of men, many women feel forced to dress up to the expected standard, all the while feeling miserable.

On the contrary, dressing provocatively on Halloween may be the perfect way to empower women to wear what they want to. Bringing back the Mean Girls reference, Cady said in the movie that  “Halloween is the one day a year when a girl can dress up like a total slut and no other girls can say anything else about it.” These costumes give many women the opportunity to dress in the way they want without the otherwise regular criticism and shaming they would receive on a day-to-day basis. Women who choose to dress in a suggestive manner on Halloween should be completely free to do so. 

Halloween may act as a platform for many women to showcase their bodies. This autonomy and self-determination that women feel over their bodies on Halloween could perhaps be the small step taken in the big leap towards women’s rights and body positivity. We need to celebrate the times when a woman feels content and confident in what she is wearing.

The truth is that slutty Halloween costumes have been around for quite a while, and while extremely empowering to some women, they may not be the best option to empower all women. Despite the ongoing forward march of the feminism movement, the quite widely tolerated objectification of women continues, as we see in the case of sexualized occupational costumes. This problem still remains due to the expectations of society on how women should dress. Even if not explicitly told, a woman who is constantly bombarded with pictures of sexy costumes is pressured into dressing a certain way in which she may be objectified. 

When a woman willingly wears a sexy costume, she is in no way degrading herself. The ideas behind these costumes are degrading. The fact that a woman may be pressured into choosing a costume she is not comfortable in is degrading. The inability to find other costume options is degrading. A simple solution would be to make available sexy and modest costumes that allow women of every color, race, size, and religion to feel empowered in what she is wearing. We also must work towards a society where we accept a wider range of outfits. Instead of forcing women to wear something more suggestive on occasions that fit in with the patriarchy’s views or creating workforces where women are constantly demeaned, we should strive to create an accepting global community. Halloween is one of the seemingly minute things that we must aim to change in order to do so.