Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder — Is her weight an issue?

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Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder — Is her weight an issue?

There are few things that people are more sensitive about than their personal appearance. The sad truth is that not everyone can be a supermodel. Not everyone can win a galaxy-wide ugly contest, either; most people fall somewhere in the middle. But everyone — men and women alike — is paranoid about looks, and weight is perhaps the most sensitive of sensitive issues. Almost everyone has some complaint.

Thin wasn’t always in
The heroin-chic, “I had a Triscuit for lunch today” look currently (and unfortunately) in vogue is surprisingly a new phenomenon. Less than a century ago, the “ideal” woman was slightly overweight; it implied good health. In some cultures, an overweight woman is extremely desirable, weight being a sign of significant wealth and, therefore, very appealing. Men haven’t sought emaciated women since the dawn of time; quite the contrary.

When it comes to the feminine figures men find attractive, there is no right or wrong. So long as the woman in question isn’t so thin or so heavy that she’s in physiological danger, I could care less about personal taste. Some men are attracted to women who carry a little more weight. Some men are attracted to women who are plainly overweight. Some prefer slender figures.

Enter the cultural imperative
The danger comes when a person allows society and/or fashion magazines to define beauty. It’s cruel and unusual to a) expect every woman to look as thin as the women on runways today and b) expect every man to be attracted to them.

I’m not interested in the health issues associated with weight except to say that it’s inappropriate for women to be encouraged to go too far in either direction. The point is that men are not all cut from the same dough; taste is utterly subjective and should not be dictated in any way by what’s “in style” right now. Style is really nothing more than an attempt on the part of a minority to influence what they believe the majority thinks is fashionable — and sometimes they’re wrong.

There is no shame in being attracted to whatever you’re attracted to. The worst mistake you could make is to allow yourself to be misled by social propaganda into believing that you’re not right in the head if you don’t find 100-pound women to be the ideal physical form. Go for what you want, never encourage ill health, and depend on the fashion mags only when you need cologne samples to rub on yourself.