Is the age-old “beauty myth” dead or have feminists somehow reclaimed it, and if so, is it no longer a tool of patriarchy?  The more women have gained entry into realms once dominated by men, including fashion, the more some seem intent on flipping the script when it comes to objectification of the female body. But is self-objectification — showing a little leg and much more, and sassing those who deride them — really a form of empowerment? Sydney Sweeney seems to be emerging as a poster child for this largely undeclared movement among high-flying Gen Z women to shamelessly flaunt their bodies to create an aura of bad-girl, even raunchy, sexiness. It leaves even their diehard fans, including gaggles of male-gazing men, to tsk-tsk in quiet adoration. But not everyone’s in Sweeney’s thrall.  The thinly veiled angst of the young women who feel left behind isn’t Sweeney “hate,” it’s an anguished call for authenticity. Sweeney thinks she’s turning the tables on The Man. But it’s still just a dance of seduction.