What Men Really Think of Brunettes
Do men judge women by the color of their hair? We asked a real guy for his take.
By Rich Santos
Photo Credit: Robert Chizzola
Have you ever taken a Rorschach test? The doctor shows you "inkblots" and you blurt out what comes to mind. The inkblots measure perception of abstract shapes, tapping into the corners of the brain.
Hopefully, guys don't judge a woman by her hair color, but they do have perceptions based on culture, media, and personal taste, similar to unconscious interpretation of inkblots.
What's my "inkblot-style" reaction to brunettes?
Brunettes
After some research, I learned that women with black hair are not necessarily classified as brunettes. But I'll lump "dark-haired girls," from brown to black hair, under "brunettes" here.
Brunettes are mysterious and intimidating. I couldn't find a brunette with the same cultural impact that, say, Marilyn Monroe had for blondes. But I noticed most famous dark-haired classic women — such as Jane Russell and Audrey Hepburn — smiled less frequently than Marilyn did in pictures, so they appear pensive and mysterious.
Brunettes might have a chip on their shoulder. Could this be because blondes get a lot of the glory? Many brunettes enjoy reminding me that "blondes are dumb."
Brunettes are intense, stormy, and angry. In The Wizard of Oz (a movie many of us grew up with), the good witch is portrayed by the redhead, and the wicked witch has dark hair. People with no life (like me) may remember the Smurfs episode in which the evil wizard Gargamel created the brunette female Smurfette to destroy the all-male Smurf village. Once she is cured, and becomes "good," Smurfette is blonde.
Brunettes "walk in beauty, like the night..." Unlike blonde hair, dark hair absorbs light. If blondes are day, brunettes are night (yes, that rhymes). Seasonally, blondes are spring and summery, and brunettes are autumn and wintry.
The eyes may actually have it. Eye color sometimes mixes with hair color amazingly … blue eyes with dark hair, brown eyes with blonde, and green with, well, any hair color. It's funny how culture and media influence perception of hair color, but my personal opinion is that it doesn't matter what color your hair is. If you're hot, you're hot.
Personality could trump everything. That Marilyn Monroe movie was called Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, but a more accurate title might be: Gentlemen Prefer a Girl Who Lets Them Reign Over the TV Remote, or Gentlemen Prefer a Girl Who Lets Them Hang Out with the Guys Whenever He Wants.
Do women have stereotypes about guys' hair color, or are you just happy when he has hair? What are your thoughts on these stereotypes, and what stereotypes do you have for blonde, brunette, and redheaded women?
Find out what guys think about blondes and redheads.
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