Makeup For Men?

Farhad Manjoo makes the case:

Obviously men should wear makeup. It’s sort of crazy that we don’t, actually. Human beings have been adorning themselves since forever; evidence of the application of body paint dates back at least 50,000 years and is taken to be one of the first signs of modern human behavior. For nearly all that time, both men and women indulged in cosmetics. As recently as a few hundred years ago, it was common for upper-class men in Britain and France to wear rouge and powder. It was only around the turn of the 19th century that facial adornment for men began to go out of fashion—though at the same time, other cosmetic enhancements for men, especially hair-care products, took off. This makes little logical sense (though, granted, it’s folly to apply logic to fashion trends). If it’s seen as necessary for a modern man to comb and sculpt his hair, why isn’t he expected to make up his face, too?

Update from a reader:

A man should not be able to wear makeup because it would otherwise interfere with his fabulous beard.

(Photo of Pete Wentz by Mark Sullivan/WireImage via Getty Images)