beauty

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

>The latter set seems to have more predictive power: one may show 
>pictures of Japanese women to American men who will rank their 
>attractiveness in an order mirroring that of Japanese men.
>
>-- Luke

What matters in the evolution of animals through "sexual selection," 
according to Darwin, is the choices that _females_ make:

*****   But in very many cases the males which conquer their rivals, 
do not obtain possession of the females, independently of the choice 
of the latter. The courtship of animals is by no means so simple and 
short an affair as might be thought. The females are most excited by, 
or prefer pairing with, the more ornamented males, or those which are 
the best songsters, or play the best antics; but it is obviously 
probable that they would at the same time prefer the more vigorous 
and lively males, and this has in some cases been confirmed by actual 
observation.* Thus the more vigorous females, which are the first to 
breed, will have the choice of many males; and though they may not 
always select the strongest or best armed, they will select those 
which are vigorous and well armed, and in other respects the most 
attractive.

(Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, 
<http://www.biologie.uni-hamburg.de/b-online/e36_descent/descent_chap8.htm>) 
*****

It is "much rarer" for males to select females in the animal kingdom, 
and when the former select the latter, it is "vigor" as well as 
"attractiveness" of the latter that counts:

*****   In the converse and much rarer case of the males selecting 
particular females, it is plain that those which were the most 
vigorous and had conquered others, would have the freest choice; and 
it is almost certain that they would select vigorous as well as 
attractive females.

(Charles Darwin, _The Descent of Man, 
<http://www.biologie.uni-hamburg.de/b-online/e36_descent/descent_chap8.htm>) 
*****

Darwin, however, failed to apply the same principle to analysis of 
the role of "sexual selection" in the evolution of human beings in 
particular, choosing, instead, to develop explanations that suited 
the ideology of male supremacy and naturalized it.

Postscript: Hopeful LBO males may submit the pictures that show 
themselves to their best advantage to LBO females, for our 
discriminating examination of their beauty, vigor, or lack thereof. 
Clothing optional.  ;->
-- 
Yoshie

* Calendar of Events in Columbus: 
<http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/calendar.html>
* Anti-War Activist Resources: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/activist.html>
* Student International Forum: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/>
* Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osu.edu/students/CJP/>