Wolf Girls and Hirsute Heroines: Fur, hair and the feminine

Western society has long had a complicated relationship with fur. Depending on the context, furry vestments might signify the barbarian, the noble savage, the divine, the cursed fairytale hero/heroine, or privilege and wealth, reflecting the broad spectrum of attitudes - both positive and negative - towards the animal and its pelt. This relationship becomes further complicated when "fur" is not worn, but rather "grown" by the human body, with excessive body hair or hirsutism occupying an especially contentious space, particularly for the female sex. Fifteenth century images of a hairy Mary Magdalene may have seen the feminine penitential pelt symbolise a commitment to celibacy and a renunciation of earthly vanities, nevertheless John Bulwer's 1654 declaration that "woman is by nature smooth and delicate; and if she have many hairs she is a monster" rings truer for most representations of the hirsute woman. Notwithstanding three waves of feminism and a generation of women liberated from the razor, the glut of depilatory products on the market (never mind the proliferation of Brazilian waxing salons) indicate that almost four centuries later, female body hair - in any form - remains disturbing to social sensibilities and conventions