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Louis, is it not?
Louis: It's amazing, yeah.
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Show that I could even remotely think of.
Louis: Absolutely.
David: There's a new book out called "Erotic Capital" by Catherine Hakim, and she argues
that women should use sex appeal to level the playing field at work, and that women
should, essentially, "flaunt it" at work.
But erotic capital is apparently not as simple as plastic surgery and charm school. And this
is not the type of argument you would expect from someone like Hakim, who describes herself
as a feminist, especially not the type of argument you would hear from someone who has
made basically a career of studying the inequities of women at work, using your sexuality to
get ahead.
And many women already do that to some degree, but considering sex appeal to be the last
straw to shatter that glass ceiling, I don't know that in the long run it is really going
to be beneficial for women. That was my initial reaction.
Louis: Right.
David: What do you think?
Louis: I guess I'd have to agree. I'd say that over time, things are getting better,
why throw a wrench into it like this?
David: Well, Catherine Hakim is a research fellow at the London School of Economics,
and she's completely serious about this. The book is close to 300 pages, and it's basically
a story of why women should use sexual capital to level the playing field at work.
And she says this is more than just... she says it's a combination of beauty, style,
social skills, charm, that can be learned. And she says if... this may mean you have
to spend a lot of money on brand-name clothes, this may mean you need to diet, you may need
to exercise, that nobody wants to hire the overweight, so that as sad as it is, you need
to play the game, and if you want to get ahead and leverage erotic capital, you need to diet,
you need to exercise. You might need to tan, you might need hair dye, maybe you need cosmetic
surgery, and that these are all necessary evils if you want to make it to the top.
Now, on one hand, when I was looking through this, I said to myself it's almost being written
like people are forgetting that there's a preference for attractive women, right? And
I don't think anybody's forgetting that.
Louis: Right.
David: The question is is it really leveling the playing field if women are doing well
by leveraging what is being discussed here as erotic capital? Is it really leveling of
the playing field if that's why they are getting more promotions, higher salaries, into more
positions of power?
Natan: Let me ask you this: I mean, is the idea that this is a means to an end, that
by doing this for a certain amount of time, women will be in positions of power where
the system will be different and they won't any longer have to do this?
David: That's the question. Is it going to be... if this works, if women level the playing
field successfully in the short or medium term by leveraging erotic capital, is it going
to make it such that then, because there will be so many women in power, this is no longer
an issue?
I completely disagree. I think women in power who get into power as a result of using erotic
capital are going to be making decisions along the same lines that they are being made now
by men in this framework. In other words, those women who get into power by using erotic
capital are going to use the same barometers of style, attractiveness, etc., to make their
promotion, hiring, salary decisions.
Louis: That's not going to be true in every case.
David: Not in every case, but on the whole, I don't think it will really level the playing
field.
Louis: It could be. I'd imagine in this book she has some type of poll or study on attractive
women and pay, salaries, positions of power. Is there any of that?
David: We know... we know that there is a beauty premium, it's been well-documented,
but not only do attractive women face... you know, have certain positive aspects... or,
rather, certain easier times with certain things at work in terms of negotiating salary,
you know, we don't have to go through it, but they are also often resented by colleagues
and viewed as less intelligent or vain. And let's be honest, who really wants to be wondering
all the time, did I really deserve the raise or promotion or recognition, or was it based
on my looks? Maybe what Catherine...
Louis: Well, if you follow this book, clearly you don't care.
David: Maybe Catherine Hakim is saying use it because you're able to use it. I don't
know.
For the sake of discussion, what would happen if a buff, handsome man came dressed into
work with muscle shirts and tight pants in an office mostly with women? I mean, let's
reverse it. I think most people would just assume the guy was gay. I think, actually,
that's what'd happen. I don't think it would have the same effect.
Louis: Or deem it unprofessional and unnecessary.
David: You think?
Louis: One of the two.
David: I don't know that a reversal on this one from male to female really gets us any
further, because... in thinking about it, because I think it would just be seen completely
differently.
Louis: True, but the... but the same attractiveness rule applies.
David: The same attractiveness rule applies. Yeah, you're not going to be worse off if
you're more attractive, even as a man.
Louis: Right. Right.
David: I agree. Well, tell me your thoughts on this one, david@davidpakman.com. My concern,
I don't know that it will really level the playing field.
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