Beauty is in the eye of beholder, says an old catch phrase. But how true does it ring? Nowadays beauty is what the other one million people think they know and impose on you. Media is partially responsible for this, what dictates as beautiful can be different significantly from time and place. So is there any idea of beauty that can be universally accepted throughout ages in all corners of the globe?
Oh, my drawing. Hmm, could be better. The scan was poor and the colors faded. I can imagine it, but somehow I can’t get the color I wanted. It would be much simple if I could do it digitally, but I suck at tablet and photoshop. I sure hope some artistic guru can teach me how. That’s enough rant.
How can one be describe as beautiful? Believe it or not, there is actually a ratio to measure one’s face and even body. It’s a complex series of 1:1.6 lines (the ratio of say, lips to jaw, pupils and eyes etc) that create triangular shapes and eventually those shapes form a mold for a face. If the ratio matches, then they are considerate beautiful. Oddly enough, there are researches that back this up, but that’s not to say the rest are not beautiful.
In old days, even up to the turn of previous century, and in some countries now, beauty is how plump people are. The bigger one is the more wealth does he or she possesses. This concept began from the idea that bigger people meant more food to be had, thus meant they were considerate as having more and at the upper class of society. Some of African countries are still thinking like that, in tribal settlement mothers usually force feed their young, especially daughters so they grow fat. Without modern supplements, this can be tough, so they resort in lots of maize and milk, sometimes even up to the point where the daughters throw up.
It’s mostly agreeable that beauty has to be attained, even for the ones born with more generous build then others. People need to maintain or simple achieve the state of beauty. From simple things like what one eat, how many times one exercise until the more extreme counterparts like using a corset, a tiny Chinese shoes or plastic surgery. That is actually the easy part, the harder part is how to be beautiful on inside, inner beauty, as they say.
Like many pageant events, people can be judged from how they react and respond to several problems. This is not certain, but it gives us a viewpoint on how one on the inside. People with more vibrant personality, modesty, humbleness, confident, honesty, generosity etc is viewed or referred as more beautiful. I agree to this, but not everyone at every time is given the opportunity to prove themselves on these occasions. Mostly we look at someone only at skin deep, “Wow, nice boobs!”, or “Kyaa, so cute…” that’s already a plus point regardless if the people are jerks.
Commonly, the usual concept of beauty is young, good skin complexion and body proportion. This is probably the most basic idea, and rightfully so. But there are so many interpretation that born from this. I don't mean in extreme cases like fetishes, but in more subtle ways. For instance, more comedical Japan's elf or furry like character. Basically put a girl in bunny costume, ehm Playboy inspired. It's mildly amusing and just for entertainment sake.
How about the more real ones, like skinny models. It is thought that skinny is better nowadays from much media exposure of lean people on magazine or news. Models do tend to have light frame, bordering on insanely thin. It can look good for the most part if the dresses are right or the poses are well adjusted, but too skinny can mean eating disorder. Some of them just don't look healthy and even come across as anorexic.
Then the other end of spectrum, the more muscular one. Some fitness females model are known to have massive muscles in their repertoire. Some even achieved the bodybuilding standard and looks too over-muscled, albeit this happens more often in Western society. I rare see any women with more athletic build in daily life.
Turns out guys can be described as beautiful too, but the meaning has shifted from more masculine look to over feminine persona. I blame K-pop and J-pop. Some of the guys actually look like maho, for lack of better words. There is a reality show in Animax "Pretty boys and girls" in which all contestants must perform ridiculous humiliating cheesy act of "cuteness". I vomited a bit when I saw a guy wearing make-up, lipstick, act like a girl, dance like a girl even wink like a girl and still have the nerve to say that they are boys, even trying to act bad-ass and cool sometimes. Just plain bloody atrocity. An abomination towards nature. Abnormalities at its finest.
Korean boybands make Justin Bieber look as macho as Ahnold Swashnegger. I downloaded SM*ho vid out of curiosity, half way through, I coughed, deleted the vid just so I wouldn't get infected by their mahoness.
I have more respect for crossdresser. Yeah, at least they have the balls to say that this is female's outfit or it's female char. There are even Kabuki, old Victorian play or ancient Chinese performance where the girls were played by the males. That doesn't means they were maho, some of them can be artistic even, rather then pretentious girl wannabes that still have "guy only in KTP"
So does that means guys can't be beautiful with neat clothes or long hair? Not necessarily so. There are tons of guys who look okay even if they dress slightly different.
So guys can be beautiful without being maho.. that leaves the question, why choose the maho part?
Let me end with a quote from Jack Black's old movie, Shallow Hal.
Hal: Okay, who do you think is the most beautiful woman in the world?
Mauricio: Wonder Woman.
Hal: Okay... let's say everyone else in the world thought Wonder Woman was ugly.
Mauricio: It wouldn't matter. Because I know they'd be wrong.
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