Wednesday, October 19, 2011

How deep is the attraction?

The Greek god in a toga.
Bollywood movie stars with heavy eye make-up.
The rugged Marlboro man.
A courier in Louis XIV's court with a white perfumed wig and lace cuffs.
An African hunter with intricate body scars made by rubbing wood ashes into knife cuts.

Culture and marketing dictate prevailing standards for rating attractiveness, but can’t the attraction between a hero and heroine be deeper than clothes, cars, and skin? The best hunters, the strongest fighters, the last men standing don’t always have flowing hair and azure eyes.

Astrologers assert chart compatibility generates a powerful attraction. Biologists have subtle pheromones.

Our eyes might linger a second longer on a man with physical beauty, but as soon as he opens his mouth, or fails to hold open the door, we know.

Oh yes, we know.

5 comments:

Sarah Tokeley said...

Also, it's amazing how the more attracted you become to a man, and the better you get to know him, the better looking he becomes :-)

Jill James said...

I think my husband is so much more handsome than the day I married him. Which is funny because we are both pushing 50 and he is now bald. LOL But, he is the dearest thing in the world to me.

Josie said...

So true, Ana. Yes, we know right away. Marketing and the media are so powerful these days, though---especially with the emphasis on perfection. I worry about my 16 year old daughter and how she will see the world as an adult.

Sheila Tenold said...

Looks fade, good character doesn't.

Too bad Hollywood has it backwards because their influence convinces too many young men and women that life is all about surface appearances.

Dawn Marie Hamilron said...

Interesting post, Ana. I kissed many a prince that turned out to be frogs before I met my DH. I saw him across a parking lot and knew. When I tripped over him on a mountain top, it was a done deal.