the “bimbo” subculture is a direct result of the vsco girl subculture. in this essay i will-
the vsco girl trend peaked in late 2019, and was mainly defined by big t-shirts with leggings, scrunches, hydroflask water bottles, and slogans like “save the turtles”. it was harmless, just a lot of girls who made environmental consciousness and general comfort into an aesthetic and, oh yeah, were subjected to ridiculous levels of hatred. the thing about the trend that made it so hated was that it was entirely unable to be sexualized, and overall very hard to market. there’s only so much money one can make off a bunch of girls who wear very little makeup, simple clothes, and try to stay environmentally conscious, and nothing about the comfy and youthful clothes are sexualizable. the trend was very quickly shut down.
over summer 2020– most of 2020 post-quarantine actually— the big new trend was cottagecore, which, once again, was pretty heavily held up by girls having fun. no distinct brands headed the look, and it was defined by big sweaters, long skirts (which hadn’t been in fashion for years), cutesy patterns and colors that can be acquired anywhere, very little makeup, and a video game (animal crossing). once again, very difficult to sexualize as it was, overall, pretty modest and comfortable clothing, and hard to market due to the lack of any brands hailed as superior.
these were both still feminine looks, but they were much less harmful than most of the femininity pushed by brands and media. they were a step in the right direction, a direction that focused less on artificiality or discomfort and more on legitimate expression and fun.
the sudden blow up of the bimbo subculture is a pushback, a look where suddenly it’s woke and even somehow actively progressive for women to act dumb, waste all your money on makeup that keeps you looking exactly how men want you to and on overpriced brands that make you look rich and uncomfortable clothes that sexualize you. these choices do not exist in a vacuum, and this trend is mainly on platforms filled with girls who are barely into their teen years who are being pushed into extreme sexualization that alienates them from their bodies and choices that we cannot freely make in the society we live in. the level of hatred that was directed at the comfortable, fun, and non-sexualized vsco girl trend will never be directed at the bimbo subculture. think for a moment about why that is.
It's not just the subcultures themselves either, it's how they bleed into society. Popular subcultures always have some broader influence on attitudes and behaviors.
Sure vsco and cottagecore are only popular with a small subset of women, but they make being environmentally concious, using a few select reusable products, and living a simple, comfortable, self-sufficient life trendy and fashionable. If these subcultures became too influential on social attitudes overall, it would not go well for a lot of companies or for men in general. Men hate when women have interests like gardening or making jam or animal crossing that don't involve pleasing men.
Meanwhile bimbo culture encourages mindless buying and self-objectification, and discourages self-sufficiency, even for women who don't subscribe to the subculture. It pulls expectations for all women in these directions.
