Anon. said; "...Scandinavia (and not the East East European and Russians) is the standard of white -- in which Blonde hair and blue eyes is there in plenitude..."Okay... Let's look at the 100 Best Looking Women - according to the site; http://www.100besteverything.com/100-best-looking-women.php
1 - Jessica Alba (French Canadian/Mexican)2 - Adrianna Lima (Brazilian)
3 - Doutzen Kroes (Dutch) *Photo Below
4 - Scarlett Johansson (Dutch) *Above Photo
5 - Alessandra Ambrosio (Italian/Polish)
6 - Meagan Fox (Irish/French/Native American)
7 - Keira Knightly - (Scottish/Welsh/English)
8 - Eva Longoria (Mexican)
9 - Eva Mendez (Cuban)
10 - Charlize Theron - (German/French)
So Anon., if we use your definition of the standard of "White" beauty - it would seem that only two of the top-ten qualify.
But even these two share the phenotypic trait of larger than average lips.
And Ms Kroes lacks the requisite Blond hair.
The thing that all of the women have in common is a certain amount of juiciness - not a bland, shapeless sylph among them. Again... why are the traits generally associated with white beauty lacking in the most beautiful "white" women.
Rarity or scarcity of those combined traits. Blond hair blue eyed features are not as plentiful as brunettes, brown eyes, thus the rarity of those features were often prized more--even in England where you stated all the ugly chicks are. The English Rose was and is typically blonde with Blue eyes and explains why blonde hair dye is the most popular color on the market.
ReplyDeleteAlso, a lot of those women are there because their beauty is accessible and thus easily marketable. Blonde hair and blue eyes usually denotes an ethereal quality, thus why Jesus is Caucasian with blues, and why most of the great masters in western art such as Botticelli’s Venus, painted the Blonde blue eyes woman as the ultimate prize.
Keira Knightly!!! I'll give her cute buty the finest...No Sir!!! Recount!!!
ReplyDelete@ Anon - So the rarest traits are the standard of beauty?
ReplyDeleteA Blond Jesus?
Maybe it can be used to convey a certain imagery - much in the same way The Whore of Babylon is usually pictured as a dark haired woman.
@ Ojo - I didn't make the list, mine would be different.
They are rare--hence the ideal in most European/White cultures. Only a small percentage of the European population is blonde with Blue eyes, thus Hitler should have just stuck with brown hair and dark eyes, yet he used the less replicated Blond hair (only concentrated in Northern Europe), blue eyed ideal.
ReplyDeleteCould be less intentional as you say, but Jesus is usually seen as White with Blue eyes and light hair--he is never potrayed as a typical Middle Eastern with brown eyes, dark hair and olive skin. Even Blacks, Asians, Latinos from other countries use the same Jesus and don't change his physicality to suit their cultural make up.
But wouldn't a red-headed Irish woman be even more rare and pale with blue or green eyes?
ReplyDeleteWhy not use red heads as the ideal?
IMO - Jesus will probably appear as whatever "race" a person hates the most.
I'd like to see people's reaction to that.
Red hair is rare in general but due to historical context that I can’t adequately explain, red hair and green eyes was often demonized as evil. I can only surmise that because the Nordics and the Celts who may have had more red hair were constantly at war a few thousand years back with each other and this atavistic cultural dislike was passed down through the ages. Some of the same stereotypes that are accorded Blacks were also given to those unfortunate to have Red hair, green eyes and freckles, i.e. they were lustful, too emotional, too childlike, evil, too deviant, too sexual, and impulsive and the list of negativity and superstition went on. Some were seen as witches, as harbingers of evil and the residue of this superstitious prejudice can still be found in modern times—just Google gingerism (a British description).
ReplyDeleteNot so with Blonde hair and blue eyes. From the 12th century on, most heroes and heroines were blonde hair and blue eyed. Often European literature and art adequately illustrates White racism and prejudice since without fail those who were evil were often dark, and those who were good were light.
Can’t argue with your idea about Jesus since that has crossed my mind in a slightly different way. I always felt that he would be totally unrecognizable to those who say they are Christian but are narrow-minded and racist. I usually see him as a derelict or someone completely unassuming and not at all like a Joel Osteen or some divine light that people would recognize.