And here’s to a healthy Sophia Loren-esque body-image ideal for the natural weight of most women (notwithstanding the fact that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes): a happy medium between the equally distorted ancient Venus of Willendorf bulk and the anorexic ‘stick insect’ idealised female form of today. Thanks Phaedrus.
As for the juxtaposition of the male figure inverted to the female form, that is another story …
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I guess the lesson here is not to let gay men set our ideals of beauty.
But these skinny women do get socio-economically advantaged men. Look at Flavio Briatore and his girl friends.
The only way a woman can attract a male is via her appearance (contrary to most animal kingdoms) whether it was in the ancient times or today’s anorexic ideal women.
— ok, a bit generalisation, but appearance is a major factor.
@m.idrees – Nice projection. :P
I refuse to give the Edward Bernays school that much credit for manipulating our collective consciousness via the use of totems. The monkey-see monkey-do principle of education comes with the assumption built in that our species does not have many neurons devoted to introspection or critical thinking. We’re just a herd. The individual is impotent, powerless, and other-directed. The Marxist school seems particularly susceptible to this line of thought – wherein the archetype falls directly from the architect’s mind into reality like Athena climbing out of the forehead of Zeus.
No one can create an archetype anymore than they can sprout wings. On the other hand, anyone with reasonable intelligence can recognize an archetype and use that information in art or politics or while playing tiddly winks. But it’s just information. It’s not a spell. It’s not a magic potion. It’s just information.
Heed the oracle. “Know thyself.”
I spoke about the ‘ideals’ of beauty, not its reality. I hardly know of anyone who finds stick figures attractive. I do know many women who are starving themselves to death aspiring to the ideal, because it is the only one that is acknowledged in the media. This is a question of power, not of perceptions.
LOL! :-P