The 1700s/1800s, also known as the Victorian Era, was a glorious time period regarding beauty standards and appearance for men and women. Like today, fashion means everything, whether you notice it or not. What you wear on your head, in your hair, on your face, on your body, and on your feet tell those around you who you are. Fashion is a language that is universal and comprehended without words. You can tell someone where you're from, what job you have, what social class you're in, and how you live just by how you display yourself. 

During the era in which Middle March takes place, makeup and hair products are essential in the lives of women and men. Just like fashion, you want to tell others all about you. They used products such as powder for your face and hair, coils to give the voluminous perm look, dyes from berries to give that warm rosy glow on the face to appear more youthful, animal fats for foundation to cover imperfections and to create a "sexy" look, and oils for eyeliner to create a depth effect on the eyes. The heavily powdered face and hair were made from rice, which left the appearance very light and flushed which showed health and wealth. 

Dorothea, for example, definitely wears coils so she can achieve that curly look that frames her face, and a pale powder on her face to look so much younger. Causaban has a slick combed and plong powdered look. Any higher social class person in Middlemarch all has the beauty standard in common, they all wear their clothes, hair, and makeup the same.

C, Jennie. “Makeup and Hairstyles of the 1700's.” Straight Ahead Beauty, 29 June 2017, straightaheadbeauty.com/2017/06/29/makeup-hairstyles-1700s/.