Beauty Around the World
September 3, 2008
The idea of beauty may differ from person to person, and from place to place. What remains common is the idea of looking one’s best. Over the years, and through various geographic boundaries, the attempt at dressing up and looking beautiful has taken on various dimensions.
In olden times across Europe, and today even in China, a woman’s slender waist is considered beautiful. Tight corsets are worn to make the frame appear smaller. They even take great efforts to minimize the intake of food to have slender bodies.
In African tribes it is believed that long necks are beautiful. Women wear metal rings around their necks to increase its length. The more rings, the more beautiful the lady. Another perception of beauty here is a well-endowed body. Many African women stuff their skirts and trousers with cushions to make their posterior appear more endowed and hence, more beautiful.
In India, over many centuries, the piercing of the ears and nose has been considered aesthetic and appealing. It is now almost a tradition in most households to have ears pierced of the daughter, and piercing of the nose is also extremely common. This fad has now caught on even globally. Another notion of beauty has been long hair. The true beauty and strength of a woman lay in her hair, it was believed. This has changed over the years as women now opt for shorter hair.
The Japanese consider small feet very beautiful. From a very early age, the girls were made to wear very small, heavy wooden shoes that clamp the feet, so that they are unable to grow to their normal length. This practice has been stopped now, but the fancy still continues.
Though some of these practices may to us seem a little bizarre, they are perceptions that prevailed and persisted over the world. It is really true then, that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder.
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