The View of Tattoos in Our Society Today Essay Example

stimulate stereotyping are social class and the size of the tattoo.

In America tattoos used to be a symbol of upper class status until the invention of the electric tattoo needle in 1891.This invention increased the ease of applying tattoos and hence decreased the price making them accessible to lower classes (Modification, ND). Perhaps this was the beginning of the negative stereotypes about tattoos, relating to society. The prison population represents a large group of individuals with body modification.

In the past bikers, sailors, truckers and the rock-n-roll The Views of Tattoos 3 industry have all been related to the tattoo industry. The most common pseudo assumptions are that people with tattoos are criminals or social deviants.Even more interesting is the differences between genders and how society views body modification for each sex. Tattoos have always been primarily a man’s activity. According to research used to examine undergraduate students’ attitudes toward women with tattoos, (Hawkes, Senn, and Thorn) found those women may be more than 50% percent of the individuals currently obtaining tattoos.

Women experience more negative reactions from society than men do (2004). Therefore, individuals who choose to express themselves through body art and tattoos are stereotyped against.This occurs due to other people’s biased opinions, negative influences or associations with tattoos. Employment often poses a problem with individuals and their body art. People with tattoos or body art have limited rights in the workplace, which makes proving employers views based on gender stereotypes difficult to prove.

According to Louis Pitchman, a lawyer, who specializes in employment law, concludes: “Neither federal nor state law protects employees from discrimination due to their tattoos or body piercing”

(Bahadosingh, 2007). In the case of Hub Folding Box Company, Inc. vs.Massachusetts Commission against Discrimination, Deborah Conner, a clerk for Hub, sued her employer for gender discrimination.

A male employee was not required to cover his navy tattoo; however, Conner was told to cover her heart-shaped tattoo on the forearm or be terminated. The companies reasoning was based on outdated gender stereotypes. Conner won her case when the courts ruled in her favor (Bahadosingh, 2007). Employers often rely on the stated exempted reasoning, “in a business establishment for, a reasonable business purpose when retaliating lawsuits (Bahadosingh, 2007).Employees need to consider the employer’s policies on appearance and dress code when seeking employment, where body art is acceptable. The Views of Tattoos 4 People choose to indulge in body art and tattoos for many positive reasons, yet many tend to regret having gone through with the act of tattooing later in life.

The most common reason is to tell a life story through the use of the tattoo(s). The tattoos can be compared to a map that narrates a story. Another reason may be to memorialize a loved one or to help the individual cope with a loss. Tattoos and body art the ultimate form of self expression for non-conformists.Tattooing provides a way for the individual to feel a sense of control over one’s own body.

Time and again when young people get attoos or often already heavily tattooed, they have to hide them from their parents. Later on in life the “parents” tend to be replaced with “bosses”, in regard to employment. Most people have good logical reasons for wanting to get a tattoo. However, they

can not control the outcome of how people in society will perceive them. Ted Mitchell, (Tattoo Magazine, 2002, 160:61) describes his attitude towards tattooing: “The meanings overall are very personal and I don’t tell anyone what this is. People often regret later in life in having participated in body art, at all.

According to a national survey in which 163 tattooed men and women were asked about their tattoos one-third of those men and women said they regretted haven gotten their tattoo(s) (Bahadosingh, S. and Anderson, D. , 2007). Age seems to be the most common reason for regret. What one finds amusing and cool at 20 years old changes by age 50. Some other common reasons why people may regret getting tattoos are; a lover’s name, a gang symbol, a prison tattoo, and the location of the tattoo itself.

Getting tattooed is a very personal decision that should not be taken lightly. Removal of a tattoo can get expensive, costs can range up to one thousand dollars depending on the size of the tattoo being removed (Bahadosingh, 2007). The art of Tattooing is very much alive in American culture today. Some experts believe the act of tattooing is fueled by a fear to conform to society. There are two groups of people within the “Tattoo/Body Modification” world. They are the conformists and the non-conformists, groups.

Both The Views of Tattoos 5 groups need each other and depend on each other.The conformists have themselves tattooed on non- public skin, while the non-conformists choose to display their tattoos on visible skin. The conformists tend to hide their tattoos from society. While the non-conformists seem to seek attention

from theirs, in order to send a message to society. The conformists need the non-conformists to assert themselves; push the envelope of what is acceptable in society and the conformists is needed to make sure the boundaries are not pushed to far. Maybe the groups are two entirely different subcultures that in time will grow both more distinct and closer together at the same time”(Modification, N.

D. ). Tattoos become more popular with all age groups of people. The tattoo industry is experiencing a surge in growth.

According to an U. S. News and World Report article, there are an estimated 20,000 plus parlors operating in the United States alone, and an establishment is being added in the country everday. Although, tattoos may have had an unsavory reputation in the past, during the past decade soceity’s views about them have changed dramatically.Soceity will learn to be more accepting of people with tattoos. Psuedo-stereotyping of tattooed individuals will decrease with time as more people participate in the body art trend.

The Views of Tattoos 6 References Bahadosingh, S. (2007). Employers May Regulate Body Art on Their Employees. At Issue: Body Piercing And Tattoos. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center, 1-5, Retreived July 22, 2008 from Apollo Library, Gale Power Search.

Burkett, K. (2001). The Rise and fall of a Western Serotype, Urban Folklore, Body Art, Indiana University, 1-4, retrieved on July 24, 2008 from http://www. ndiania.

edu Derick, a. & Laumann A. (2006). Tattoos and Body Piercings in the United States: National Data, Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 55(3), 413-321.

Retrieved August 11, 2008, from, Apollo Library, EBSCohost data base. Hawkes, D. , Senn, C. and

Thorn, C.

(2004). Factors that influence Attitudes towards Women with Tattoos. Sex Roles: A Journal of Research, 1-20, Retrieved August 8, 2008, from Apollo Library, Gale Power Search King, G. Sherwyn, D. & Winchester, J.

(2006).You (Don’t) Look Marvelous: Considerations for Employers Regulating Employee Appearance. Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly. 350-365, retrieved July 20, 2008, from Apollo Library, Gale Power Search. Modification, (ND), 1-4, Retreived on August 6, 2008 from Google on http://www.

bmezine. com/ritual Oksanen, A. & Turtianien J. (2005).

A Life Told in Ink. Autobiography Journal, 112-130, Retrieved from Apollo Library, on August 11, 2008, Gale Power Search Tattoo Magazine, (2002). Volume 160, 61.