Beauty and attractiveness: you can be an attractive woman
Beauty from the Bible
Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful! Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of shorn ewes that have come up from the washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost its young. Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is lovely. Your cheeks are like halves of a pomegranate behind your veil. Your neck is like the tower of David, built in rows of stone; on it hang a thousand shields, all of them shields of warriors. Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle, that graze among the lilies.
Song of Solomon 4:1-16
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight.
1 Peter 3:3-4
The world of beauty
Today the world is obsessed with beauty or being beautiful. Beauty is mostly related with woman. Most men seek youth and beauty. Movies, TV, magazines, billboards, and advertisements make use of this and all display attractive people. A beautiful woman is physically appealing. John Keats says “a thing of beauty is a joy forever”.
We know beauty when we see it. But what is beauty? The online dictionary, thefreedictionary.com defines beauty as “A quality or combination of qualities that gives pleasure to the mind or senses and is often associated with properties such as harmony of form or color, proportion, authenticity, and originality.” Another online dictionary, oxforddictionaries.com says that beauty is “A combination of qualities, such as shape, colour, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight”. Synonyms of beauty include attractiveness, prettiness, good looks, pleasantness, allure, loveliness, charm, appeal, grace, elegance, exquisiteness, splendor and glamour etc.
In today’s culture, meaning of beauty has been restricted mostly to the visual sense, and further still, confined to youthful looks.
Beautiful is the classic way to describe a feminine beauty, which often expresses both outer and inner beauty. Beauty is a characteristic that gives experience of pleasure or satisfaction. Real beauty involves inner beauty such as personality, politeness, truthfulness etc. as well as outer beauty (physical attractiveness).
Outer beauty or physical attractiveness is closely associated with fertility and health. Good health gives woman attractive glow on her face and body / skin colour.
Calling a person of the opposite sex (woman) beautiful is suggestive of romantic interest; it could denote attraction to their whole being. A woman often compliments another woman’s physical beauty without romantic intentions. She would call a man good-looking, cute, or even handsome. But it is rare to hear a heterosexual man describe another man as beautiful.
With romantic intentions, beautiful is generally used to describe a feminine or very intimate beauty. Beautiful is not just used to describe people, but also places and things, which is much more universal.
Physical attractiveness: Looking sexy
What exactly makes someone attractive? Is it looks, resources, behaviour, intelligence, or something more unique and special?
Physical attractiveness stereotype does exist and is powerful. It is the tendency to perceive physically attractive people as intelligent, talented, confident, well-liked, and honest. As a result, good-looking attractive individuals have more persuasive power than individuals of average or below average looks. They have an advantage in job searches, elections, and even criminal trials.
Attractiveness or physical attractiveness is the degree to which a person's physical features are considered aesthetically pleasing or beautiful. The term often implies sexual attractiveness or desirability.
Attractiveness has long been a source of fascination for psychologists, anthropologists and behavioural scientists. Evolutionary psychologists speculate that the tendency to be attracted to physically attractive people is adaptive.
Many cultures value particular aspects of physical attractiveness, such as facial symmetry, relatively large breasts, and a small waist-to-hip ratio. Evolutionary psychologists point out that facial symmetry can be an indicator of good health, since many developmental abnormalities tend to produce facial asymmetries. A small waist-to-hip ratio, which produces an “hourglass” figure, indicates high reproductive potential. These characteristics of attractiveness indicate that women will be able to reproduce successfully. Women, on the contrary, tend to value partners’ social status, wealth, and ambition, because these are characteristics of men who can successfully provide for offspring.
What is the factors one look for when judging the attractiveness of an individual? Judgment of attractiveness of physical traits is partly universal to all human cultures, partly dependent on culture or society or time period, partly biological, and partly subjective and individual.
The idea of physical attractiveness varies from one culture to another; however, there is a broad consensus on what constitutes physical attractiveness of woman. Men seem to be attracted to young and beautiful women having bodily symmetry and an overall healthy appearance.
In every culture studied, David Buss (a professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin) found common traits associated with beauty: “Clear skin, smooth skin, lustrous hair, long hair, symmetrical features, absence of open sores, pustules, or lesions, relatively small waist, relatively large breasts, and a low waist-to-hip ratio.”
What makes some women more physically attractive than others?
Many studies have looked at individual features of attractiveness, from blonde hair and long legs to height, weight, waists and shoulders.
Why do men find women’s legs so alluring?
Long legs are preferred in women. Men with legs the same length as the torso are preferred by women. One explanation is that long legs are a sign of fitness. Some research suggests that tall women have wider pelvises than shorter women, which allow easier births and higher birth-weight babies. Longer relative leg length is also associated with reduced risks of heart disease, cancer and diabetes, and lower blood pressure.
It has been argued that women are attracted to men with relatively shorter legs. This is because it makes them look more muscular, and, in evolutionary terms, more useful as a mate.
Is beautiful face makes a woman attractive?
It is found that two particular facial patterns of woman are considered as attractive in most cultures. One is a ‘cute’ pattern involving childlike features with full-lips, wide-set eyes, small nose and small chin. Another is a ‘mature’ pattern involving prominent cheek bones, high forehead, high eye brows, large pupils and a big smile.
There seems to be two opposing principles of woman beauty; symmetrical features / prettiness on the one hand and rarity / unusual features on the other.
Why do men find blonde hair attractive?
Men prefer rounder faces and that blonde hair is kinder to the outline of the face, or that natural blondes have softer skin, which men find attractive. Another suggestion is that blondes were a genetic mutation which men evolved to value as a status symbol because of the original scarcity.
The evolutionary reason why men are attracted to blondes is that the hair and skin colour make it easier to spot problems.
Which one of this is the most important factor in making women attractive and beautiful?
Top quotes on beauty
“People often say that ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder’ and I say that the most liberating thing about beauty is realizing that you are the beholder. This empowers us to find beauty in places where others have not dared to look, including inside ourselves.” - Selma Hayak
“No matter how plain a woman may be, if truth and honesty are written across her face, she will be beautiful.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt
“I think happiness is what makes you pretty. Period. Happy people are beautiful. They become like a mirror and they reflect that happiness.” ― Drew Barrymore
"I'm not a 'sexy' 'beautiful' woman. It takes a lot of work to make me look like a girl". - Megan Fox
"A beautiful woman delights the eye; a wise woman, the understanding; a pure one, the soul". - Minna Antrim
"The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mode but the true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It is the caring that she lovingly gives the passion that she shows. The beauty of a woman grows with the passing years". - Audrey Hepburn
"Beauty, to me, is about being comfortable in your own skin. That, or kick-ass red lipstick". — Gwyneth Paltrow
"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart". - Helen Keller
“A woman's heart should be so hidden in God that a man has to seek Him just to find her.” ― Max Lucado
Is beautiful breasts related to attractiveness of woman?
What makes woman breast attractive? Beauty is related to women and her beauty seems to be incomplete without beautiful breast. Hence, every woman undoubtedly wants a beautiful breast, which is not saggy but tight. A beautiful breast is an attribute of femininity. It is god gift to woman.
Most men enjoy the sight of women breasts. Majority of them consider woman breast as one of the most important features in deciding her attractiveness; waist, face and other body parts come next to breast only. Even women themselves envy others beautiful breasts and often look others breasts several times in a day.
Breast shape and size are important factors in deciding its beauty. Size of breast does matter; but big size per se is not. Ratio of bust to under bust (projection of lower part of the breast) and ratio of bust to waist are crucial for attractiveness of breast. Breasts which are too small lack visual cue for fertility and others which are too big appear to be too crowed on the chest, hence optimal size is important.
Not only size but also shape is a crucial factor in making breasts attractive. Attractive breasts have a slope of slightly convex or concave or straight on the upper side and a slightly pendulous under breast.
Is youthfulness of woman adds to her attractiveness?
Beauty, in a sense, is relative; it depends on individual. It is said that beauty lies in the eyes of its beholder.
However, it is commonly seen across cultures that man has fondness for youth. It is generally found that with age men tend to seek mate of younger age. In general the attractiveness of women of age between 18 and 40 remain unchanged for men folk. Man attractiveness to younger woman is attributed to her high child-bearing potential.
Being attractive is easier than you think: everyone can be attractive
Men have the desire to connect sexually and women have the desire to make themselves more beautiful. Women love to primp and shop. They spend more time working on our beauty. Women dedicate 55 minutes a day to their appearance in front of mirror, which is equivalent of two weeks a year.
Men look at pretty women, and whether it’s on TV, magazines, or the internet, the women we find attractive have much in common. Such common traits of attractiveness include youth, facial symmetry and an overall healthy appearance.
Research shows that romantic attraction is primarily determined by physical attractiveness. In the early stages of dating, people are more attracted to partners whom they consider to be physically attractive. Men are more likely to value physical attractiveness than are women.
Looks are more-or-less important, depending on the type of relationship involved. Usually, short-term and more exclusively sexual relationships require the most physical attractiveness. But looks become lesser and lesser importance as relationships lean toward more intimacy, sharing, and long-term support.
Beauty is, and will always be, a word associated with icons throughout history. It tends to be rigid, static physical image. Beauty can also be surgically attained. But attractiveness is a fluid variable, one that moves from the inside, out and back again. Attractiveness develops, evolves over time and can be ageless.
One can be attractive to others or simply feel attractive to oneself. Attractiveness is an attainable goal for those who take care of their bodies, enjoy their lives, maintain sensuality and engage with others.
We all know looks are important for attraction. The physical features that tend to be the most attractive to others are the ones that serve as the best indicators of health and fitness. These features can change with our health over time.
Being attractive is easier than you think. Most of the attractive features are the ones under your control. Things like proper grooming, clothing, attitude and basic physical fitness can make you very attractive.
