Why Do We Wear High Heels?
It was 1:30 am on a rainy cold February morning in midtown Manhattan. I was making my way home from a formal event and my feet ached in pain. I looked down to see my feet, sore and cold from being shoved in high-heeled sandals all night. Having already taken off my shoes for a portion of the evening to dance, I only felt a more intensified pain when forced to resume wearing the heels. Despite braving my bare feet on the dance floor, I couldn't rationalize keeping my heels off for my trip home on the subway. Anyone who has ever had to put heels back on after a full night of wearing them can relate to the level of discomfort that I felt. Why do we even wear heels? As a college-educated feminist, why am I subjecting myself to this seemingly patriarchal contraption designed to make me less mobile? I decided to find out.
As a history major, my first instinct was to get some background on high heels. High heels were originally conceived to be a functional menswear shoe. In 15th century Persia, it was common for men to wear heels when riding horses, as a way to secure themselves in stirrups. Through this functional use, heels became associated with owning horses and being a member of the upper class. Therefore, high heels eventually became a status symbol for noblemen in western fashion; the taller you were the more you were revered. In the 16th century, European women began wearing high heels as well. Women like Catherine De Medici popularized wearing chopine heels as tall as 60 centimeters (Wynne). Despite this, most women wore low heels, leaving high heels for men. According to shoe historian, Cameron Kippen "men liked this idea of towering above everyone else" (Wynne) Louis XIV was a large proponent of using the heel as a status symbol, limiting the wearing of red-soled heels to noblemen (sounds familiar *cough* Christian Louboutin). At this point, heels were not gendered, and men and women both wore them freely. However, with the French Revolution in the late 18th century, anything previously associated with the nobility was considered frivolous and subsequently deemed feminine. As a result, during the 19th century, heels largely fell out of western men's fashion and became associated with traditional ideas of femininity.
By the 20th century, heels became a symbol of female sexual objectification. During World War Two, men often carried pornographic images of "pin-up" women, wearing nothing but heels. This gendered association became even further cemented when new technology from the war allowed for the invention of the stiletto by men. Interestingly, most of the major high heel designers of the 20th century were men: Christian Louboutin, Manolo Blahnik, Stuart Weitzman, Jimmy Choo. Admittedly, with the rise of the feminist movement in the 1970s, the platform heel was introduced into fashion; unlike traditional heels, both sides of a shoe were equal height and they were comfortable. Despite this, heels continued to be used as an object of the male gaze. In fact, in a 2013 interview, Christian Louboutin said that when designing shoes he focuses less on the comfort of a woman because he "never forget[s] that shoes also have to please men" (Segran). For most of 20th-century history, high heels have been constructed by men and for men.
It feels clear from history that high heels can be viewed as an extension of patriarchal systems in fashion. This leads me back to my original question-- then why do so many people continue to wear heels in 2019? Well, one answer is, they don't. With the rise of new footwear trends fashion, such as the "dad sneaker," there has seemingly been a shift to flat shoes in all aspects of life. This shift has even been seen in formal events as well. For a long time, many women wore heels because they felt that they had too. However, people are now pushing back against these traditional sexist notions. For example, the Cannes film festival has a rule that women must wear heels, refusing admission to women in flats. To combat this, celebrities like Kristen Stewart began swapping out their heels for sneakers and going barefoot on the red carpet in protest. This shift has even occurred on Columbia's campus. Last year, Sophomore Hadley Callaway (CC'21) decided to forgo heels, instead choosing to wear her favorite pair of sneakers to a sorority formal. When I asked Hadley about her decision, she said it was an easy one to make:
"At sorority formals, I always feel a middle-school-esque worry that I need to wear heels because I know all of my friends will be. But I know my friends would support me wearing whatever I was happiest in! So ultimately I decided it wasn't worth it to me to sacrifice my comfort and dancing abilities just to do what everyone else does. Wearing sneakers meant I was able to have a great time dancing all night, worry-free. It also meant I could try—and fail—to recreate the legendary Dirty Dancing Lift scene in Times Square! I definitely plan to wear sneakers to my next formal."
Talking to Hadley, I realized that women have the power to choose what footwear they want to wear. While some women prefer sneakers, there are still many women who enjoy wearing heels. Despite their sexist history and uncomfortable stature, many women like the way they look and feel when wearing high heels. Many people wear heels as a way of reclaiming a patriarchal symbol and making it their own. This is especially true in the transgender community, where wearing heels can be used as a means of displaying gender identity. When interviewed, Vika, a Russian transgender woman who is often forced to suppress her identity, claimed: "when [she] wear[s] high heels, [her] soul soars" (Vereykina).
While heels do have a complicated and gendered history, that doesn't have to be their enduring legacy. Heels should not be limited to a certain group of people. High heel shoes should be made with a wider size range to accommodate all people, not just cis women. Everyone should feel free to make a choice about whether or not they would want to wear heels.
So why do I wear heels? Because I choose too.
Segran, Elizabeth. “High Heels, Invented For The Male Gaze, Get A Feminist Makeover.” Fast Company, Fast Company, 15 Apr. 2018,
Vereykina, Elizaveta. “'When I Wear High Heels, My Soul Soars': Meet Moscow's Shunned Transgender Community.” The Guardian,The Moscow Times Guardian News and Media, 10 Sept. 2015
Wynne, Emma. “A Short History of the High Heel.” ABC News, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 10 Nov. 2017
