Detailed Reading 4.A beautiful woman,we say in English.But a handsome man."Handsome"is the masculine equivalent of -and refusal of-a compliment which has accumulated certain demeaning overtones,by being reserved for women only.That one can call a man "beautiful"in French and in Italian suggests that Catholic countries unlike those countries shaped by the Protestant version of Christianity -still retain some vestiges of the pagan admiration for beauty.But the difference,if one exists,is of degree only.In every modern country that is Christian or post-Christian, women are the beautiful sex-to the detriment of the notion of beauty as well as of women. Question Translation
4. A beautiful woman, we say in English. But a handsome man. "Handsome" is the masculine equivalent of — and refusal of — a compliment which has accumulated certain demeaning overtones, by being reserved for women only. That one can call a man "beautiful" in French and in Italian suggests that Catholic countries — unlike those countries shaped by the Protestant version of Christianity — still retain some vestiges of the pagan admiration for beauty. But the difference, if one exists, is of degree only. In every modern country that is Christian or post-Christian, women are the beautiful sex — to the detriment of the notion of beauty as well as of women. Detailed Reading
Detailed Reading 5.To be called beautiful is thought to name something essential to women's character and concerns.(In contrast to men-whose essence is to be strong,or effective,or competent.)It does not take someone in the throes of advanced feminist awareness to perceive that the way women are taught to be involved with beauty encourages narcissism,reinforces dependence and immaturity. Ouestion Translation
5. To be called beautiful is thought to name something essential to women's character and concerns. (In contrast to men — whose essence is to be strong, or effective, or competent.) It does not take someone in the throes of advanced feminist awareness to perceive that the way women are taught to be involved with beauty encourages narcissism, reinforces dependence and immaturity. Detailed Reading
Detailed Reading Everybody (women and men)knows that.For it is "everybody",a whole society,that has identified being feminine with caring about how one looks.(In contrast to being masculine -which is identified with caring about what one is and does and only secondarily,if at all, about how one looks.)Given these stereotypes,it is no wonder that beauty enjoys,at best,a rather mixed reputation. Translation
Everybody (women and men) knows that. For it is "everybody", a whole society, that has identified being feminine with caring about how one looks. (In contrast to being masculine — which is identified with caring about what one is and does and only secondarily, if at all, about how one looks.) Given these stereotypes, it is no wonder that beauty enjoys, at best, a rather mixed reputation. Detailed Reading
Detailed Reading 6.It is not,of course,the desire to be beautiful that is wrong but the obligation to be -or to try.What is accepted by most women as a flattering idealization of their sex is a way of making women feel inferior to what they actually are-or normally grow to be.For the ideal of beauty is administered as a form of self-oppression. Women are taught to see their bodies in parts,and to evaluate each part separately.Breasts,feet,hips, waistline,neck,eyes,nose,complexion,hair and so on -each in turn is submitted to an anxious,fretful. often despairing scrutiny.Even if some pass muster. some will always be found wanting. Nothing less than perfection will do. Question Translation
6. It is not, of course, the desire to be beautiful that is wrong but the obligation to be — or to try. What is accepted by most women as a flattering idealization of their sex is a way of making women feel inferior to what they actually are — or normally grow to be. For the ideal of beauty is administered as a form of self-oppression. Women are taught to see their bodies in parts, and to evaluate each part separately. Breasts, feet, hips, waistline, neck, eyes, nose, complexion, hair and so on — each in turn is submitted to an anxious, fretful, often despairing scrutiny. Even if some pass muster, some will always be found wanting. Nothing less than perfection will do. Detailed Reading
Detailed Reading 7.In men,good looks is a whole,something taken in at a glance.It does not need to be confirmed by giving measurements of different regions of the body. Nobody encourages a man to dissect his appearance, feature by feature.As for perfection,that is considered trivial-almost unmanly.Indeed,in the ideally good- looking man a small imperfection or blemish is considered positively desirable.According to one movie critic (a woman)who is a declared Robert Redford fan,it is having that cluster of skin-colored moles on one cheek that saves Redford from being merely a "pretty face". Think of the depreciation of women -as well as of beauty -that is implied in that judgment. Question Translation
7. In men, good looks is a whole, something taken in at a glance. It does not need to be confirmed by giving measurements of different regions of the body. Nobody encourages a man to dissect his appearance, feature by feature. As for perfection, that is considered trivial - almost unmanly. Indeed, in the ideally goodlooking man a small imperfection or blemish is considered positively desirable. According to one movie critic (a woman) who is a declared Robert Redford fan, it is having that cluster of skin-colored moles on one cheek that saves Redford from being merely a "pretty face". Think of the depreciation of women — as well as of beauty - that is implied in that judgment. Detailed Reading