Why young women are dyeing their hair gray

It can be tempting to declare it as a feminist commentary. Men are considered distinguished and sophisticated with flecks of gray or a shield of silver. George Clooney, Anderson Cooper, and John Slattery stand atop a pedestal of graying beautifully, aging into the dashing gentleman, the “silver fox.”

But women cannot attain silver foxdom (vixen-dom?) in quite the same way. Sure, every once in a while, you’ll read about Helen Mirren’s “stunning” style. And singular stripes of charcoal, like Indira Gandhi’s or 101 Dalmations’ Cruella de Vil, often evoke power, or even a corresponding streak of evil. But there’s no dominant “hot” stereotype for the female gray-haired woman, despite a minor “pro-age” movement to embrace one’s natural beauty past middle age (see: 60-year-old model Cindy Joseph).

Pop culture depicts gray-haired ladies as harsh or badass, often with an undertone of masculinity. Julianne Moore’s recently adopted gray for her take on the severe President Coin in last The Hunger Games films; in the books her hair was described as “the color of slush that you wish would melt away.” X-Men’s Storm was a literal representation of the fury of thundershowers, making her shock of gray hair electrifying and appropriate. Game of Throne’s Daenerys Targaryen, freer of slaves and Mother of Dragons, has platinum hair that’s described as silver in the books.