Dan Mayer

WRTG 3030

Paper 2

Deriving the Beauty of Women

Throughout time beauty has always been something that is admired. Men have always sought after the most attractive and beautiful women. The problem is that there is not one specific body that can be described as beautiful. Time has changed the body type that we define as beautiful. Today everyone lies out in the sun trying to get the perfect tan. This is in sharp contrast to the past when women would carry sun umbrellas because a tan was associated with labor. Paintings throughout history depict women with more rounded and curved bodies. Today, almost every magazine is covered with a skinny model with a body like Ally McBeal. Could it be that beauty is actually defined by something completely separate than appearance? The love of money is common in today's society, and it is this same love that partially defines beauty. Beauty has always been defined by what only the rich and privileged could afford.

Once spring begins around campus everyone rushes to lie in the warming sun. Many girls talk about getting the perfect tan or the embarrassing look of being pasty white. This is completely opposite of the look desired by women in the past. Sun umbrellas were common because a tan meant that you had been laboring and could not afford to hire others to do the work for you. A tan was sign of the lower class who could not afford to keep their bodies hidden from the sun in nicely built houses. The average teenager is not working in the fields anymore, and farming is only a small percent of the current job market. Today, indoor workers outnumber those who labor outdoors in the sun. Most people don't develop nice tans unless they have the time and money to travel or go to a tanning salon. This has transformed tans from an ugly blemish to a beautiful, sought-after commodity. Tans that represented the poor laborers of the past are now a better indication of money. A dark and solid tan fills the mind with images of an exotic and sexy lifestyle at beaches surrounded by other beautiful and tanned people.

Weight is also another factor of beauty that has changed significantly. America has a very large overweight population. In fact, The Center for Disease Control in Atlanta recently indicated that a third of all Americans are obese(1996). In America, the norm has become overweight due to the abundance of food. Throughout history only the richest of women could afford enough food. This is why plumper women were considered beautiful, namely because they could afford to eat. A plump woman had a “softer” body because she ate more than needed and didn't work, which led to less muscle tone. The attractiveness of a plump body style had nothing to do with the actual look of the woman's body, but actually what could be inferred about her financial status. Many older paintings that had beautiful nudes depicted women that were larger than our present-day “beautiful” models. Being plump isn't a sign of wealth and class anymore; in America there is more than enough food for the majority to be overweight if it was still considered beautiful. The skinny women that model and are seen in television are small because they can afford the time to keep their bodies in that kind of shape. The average worker who spends eight hours a day at the office doesn't have time to spend a couple hours a day keeping their body toned and tight. A beautiful person now has the job of maintaining her tiny and perfect shape. Those with money can afford the time, clothes, and accessories that make the best look of the day. Is the skinny body desired for the look of a malnourished sickly woman? No, of course not. It is desired for the wealth of time that has been afforded to maintain and shape their bodies to differentiate themselves from the common overweight American.

Finally, a large family in the past was a security for parents. If there were many children in the house, they could split up the workload, help pay for expenses and take care of each other. Also, when parents got old they would count on their children to take care of them. Children were a way to carry on the family business into the future. Today with social security, retirement homes, and increasing costs of having children, children aren't a way to remove the financial burden. Since children are less desirable it makes sense that men are more attracted to skinny females. Women that are very skinny are less likely to bear children. Patients that exercise to an extreme “many times have endocrine problems that produce anovulation, therefore no pregnancy will occur,” says Marcos Pupkin, M.D., an obstetrician and gynecologist at Mercy Medical Center, in Baltimore, M.D(1999). Anonvulation is a condition in which women do not ovulate, and therefor can not get pregnant. A large family in today's society tends to be more appropriate to affluent or successful lifestyles. Most families don't have six or seven children anymore; large families are mainly a thing of the past. The financial responsibilities of having a child have led men to look for a life partner that will not bear as many children. The attractiveness of skinny women in today's society, even when discussing children, in the end has implications relating it to money.

It is true that no one wants to be considered attractive only because of something as shallow as greed. That doesn't mean that it doesn't happen. Really, what is beautiful can never be explained and is more unconscious and ingrained than we know. The unconscious search for power, money, and security can lead us to what we believe is attractive. This unconscious selection isn't the fault of a person or even a product of society. All animals have always looked for the strongest and most able to elevate and continue the species. Our tastes are no different or unnatural than a lion's or bear's. The only difference is that in our lives and society strength is not the most powerful and sought-after asset. It is the ability to provide and protect a family, which money can do better than strength. In our society, athletic ability or pure intelligence can lead to money and the ability to be a strong provider. As can be seen by the changes that have already occurred, the look that is sought after slowly changes and is redefined in a society. Beauty is being redefined and it seems that one of the primary causes is the effects of money. Next time you want to look your best, try to look like a stack of bills, because in our society the prettiest color is green.

References

Shel Franco (1999). The Skinny on Weight While Trying to Conceive. The Preconception Online, <http://preconception.com/resources/articles/conceiveweight.htm> (2002)

Williams Inference Center (1996). Overweight America. The Williams Inference Center Online, <http://www.williamsinference.com/Reports/2316overweight.htm> (2002)