For my theatre/English class for an online class for college I had to read plays and literature from Ancient Greece and Rome and other periods. What I noticed was that beautiful and handsome was used interchangeably between the sexes. There was a part where a woman's features were handsome and beautiful for man. But these were compliments, therefore, it seems that both meant good looking and weren't specific in the type of good looks. So it made me wonder what caused these terms to be associated as we do in modern times. For example, we associate beautiful with soft delicate, pretty, elegant features, therefore, this can be used for men, but mostly it's associated with women, since these adjectives sound feminine. And handsome is associated with good looks with symmetry, but stunning and attractive in a bolder way, or sublime beauty I guess. Since men have more prominent features, this term associates best with men and masculinity.
2007-09-27
19:20:49
·
2 answers
·
asked by
Brennan Huff
5
in
Other - Society & Culture