Femininity and ‘‘Frivolous’’ Spending
Image credit: Claire Jeon
‘’Just a super quick Eras Tour Girl Maths moment… I was trying to justify dropping 2k on tickets to my partner and I just realised that’s only $22 a song!’’ said TikToker Abbey Lee Richards in a video with over 40,000 views.
The Girl Maths trend has maintained it’s relevance on the internet for over a year now, being used as a tongue in cheek way for women to justify ‘’frivolous’’ purchases from iced lattes to designer handbags to Taylor Swift concert tickets. ‘’I bought this purse for $38, which means it was $30. Round down, not up,’’ said Cassandra Mazzucco in one viral Girl Maths video with over 2 million likes. But why is it that women feel the need to justify their spending in this way? And why is it only costs associated with femininity that are deemed as ‘’frivolous’’? If iced matcha lattes, sweet treats and getting your nails done fall under this category, then why don’t sports betting or video games?
Many women are using ''Girl Maths'' to justify spending large amounts of money on Taylor Swift's Eras Tour concert tickets. Image credit: Film of the Week
Tori Dunlap, founder of the Financial Feminist podcast, highlights ‘’Weaponized Altruism’’ as the reason why women are made to feel guilty for spending money on themselves. Under the patriarchy, women are raised to believe that their value stems from how much they give of themselves to someone else. As a result, women are often shamed for their purchases, being told by society that they should have donated the money instead or spent it on something more worthwhile. This is a mentality that goes beyond just ‘’frivolous’’ purchases, with the patriarchy also discouraging women from pursuing wealth in the same way that men are encouraged to. ‘’What happens then when women do start to pursue money?’’ says Dunlap. ‘’The patriarchy panics. [...] They realise that you will soon no longer be controllable because that’s really what this is about. [...] Money is about control, and they see you demanding your own worth and pursuing wealth unabashedly.’’
Tori Dunlap, founder of Financial Feminist podcast. Image credit: Forbes
In the UK, women only gained the right to financial independence as recently as 1975, when it became legal for women to open their own bank account. It wasn’t until 1982 that they had the legal right to spend their money in English pubs. With financial autonomy such a recent milestone, spending money on things that bring us joy is a right that women should exercise and embrace. Whether it’s a sweet treat after work or a designer purchase for a special occasion, I believe women defying the patriarchy by spending money on what they love without shame is, in fact, not frivolous but an act of feminism.
Let us know in the comments what you will be treating yourself to this week!
References:
Dunlap, T. (2024) 154. why do we hate when women have money?, Her First 100K. Available at: https://herfirst100k.com/financial-feminist-show-notes/154-why-do-we-hate-when-women-have-money/ (Accessed: 28 August 2024).
Roberts, C. (2022) The history of women and money. Available at: https://www.gohenry.com/uk/blog/news/the-history-of-women-and-money (Accessed: 28 August 2024).
