Are Boys Held to a Different Beauty Standard?

By Alison Caporimo, Allure magazine

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, newlywed Reese Witherspoon decided to talk dirty...but not in the way you think. ''Well, it's a boy thing, right?" she said of Water For Elephants costar Robert Pattinson's grimy appearance. "To have dirty fingernails and dirty hair, and his clothes were dirty all the time." Yuck. She added: "It was a nice escape for him to be tan and in the sun all the time instead of the vampire gear.'' Tan, I understand. But dirty? Something tells me that Pattinson his role as as a carny little too far.

Is uncleanliness really "a boy thing"? Though most girls find it a little grit sexy on guys, I highly doubt boys would swoon over a Witherspoon with matted hair and questionable grooming habits. Yet, strangely, whether they be rock stars, bikers, or Robert Pattinson, boys can pull off dirty chic in a way that girls never can.

What do you think? Are boys are held to a different beauty standard? Or is cleanliness mandatory for both genders?

More from Allure:


Photo Credit: Courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox