In recent years, the internet has taken a turn for the worse. Large-scale social media platforms have produced an influx of “girlboss” performative woman influencers. They have marketed their content under the guise of feminism, and they are selling a certain lifestyle to women that is realistically unattainable.
“The soft-life”
A lot of these influencers’ content is hyper-focused on wealth and marriage. The issue with these content creators isn’t the fact that they are women who make content for other women or even the aspects of the lifestyle they are promoting. The issue is that their content is supposed to be a way to counteract misogynistic rhetoric widely used on social media, but instead, they reinforce it. We see this reinforcement with the mass of creators encouraging women to find a wealthy husband, so they don’t have to work.
But why is this content so detrimental to the younger generation of women on the internet? It is convincing young women that financial dependence is positive, when truthfully, it is the greatest vulnerability a woman can have in our current time period.
What started off as a cute trend of women saying they don’t want to work turned into something else altogether. Creators like the Wizard Liz and SheraSeven are the pioneers of the mass production of marriage and money-focused content. These women grew their platforms from content centered around dating advice, marriage advice, and tips on how to “keep a man.” A lot of their content is a less male-centered version of “trad-wife” content. Which is content marketed to young women, usually conservative, who long for the baby-boomer era financial dependence. Although their content also encourages exploration in dating and freedom of sexual expression, they constantly contradict themselves.
Reality
Social media isn’t necessarily a reflection of society, but the impact is prevalent, nonetheless. The increase in young women drifting towards wealth and marriage content could be defined by the political climate we are currently in and the yearning for stability. I believe the overall concept of this sought-after lifestyle has the potential to be positive for women, but the expectations among many creators who live this lifestyle cause the idea to fall flat in terms of longevity.
The first question that comes to mind when seeing wealth and marriage content creators is, why do these women have to give up some form of their autonomy in exchange for a luxurious relationship? I believe it’s great to encourage love and prosperity in relationships, but unfortunately, that’s not what these creators seem to be selling. When I see these videos, there always seems to be a pattern of loss before the gain. There are women who give up their moral and political values in exchange for immense wealth, material possessions, and marriage.
The content being promoted on the wealth and marriage side of social media has two different influencer archetypes: the “old money” truther and the influencer who actually comes from “old money.” The truther typically has married into wealth. They come from any background outside of, or below, immense wealth, and they use their platform to document their lives and give advice on how they achieved what they did. The influencer who truly comes from “old money” is simply a creator who’s bored, has a ton of material possessions, and uses their platform to do the same as the truther. The main difference between the two is upbringing and intention.
Now the question remains: “What’s so bad about them spending their own money?” Nothing. There’s nothing wrong with them spending their own money. It’s the lack of social awareness. Some creators are doing shopping hauls of luxury items priced in thousands, sometimes reaching six figures. The problem comes when there are people in the comments saying things like “rich people who rich right,” or calling these women “girls-girls” for giving financial advice on the internet when they come from extremely wealthy families. The tips provided are likely not accessible to anyone outside of a certain tax bracket.
Final thoughts
The narratives and ideas being pushed within wealth and marriage content among woman creators are often detrimental to young women on social media. As attractive as the lifestyle being promoted in this content is, the reality is—it’s more likely to negatively impact a woman’s livelihood. I strongly encourage individuality among women, as it’s necessary for us to make informed decisions and observations on how and why social media affects us.