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Published on Fashioning the Body: Versions of the Citizen, the Self, and the Subject (http://www2.evergreen.edu/fashioningthebody)

Old Freewrite (Beauty Parlor 10/12) What kind of body does society need?

By Blythe
Created 15 Nov 2007 - 7:32pm

What kind of body society needs? What kind of body society needs. I feel like there's a difference, apropos of gender, between men & women's needs... Men need a body thta is strong and able. I think strength applies to both sexes. Except, especially today and among college-age youth, I feel like there's a shift in the ideal male body - men are tending to be more feminine; thinner, curvier bodies, longer hair, tighter clothing... that perhaps the shift is more towards... I think androgyny is becoming sort of an ideal - male bodies need to have the pleasing aesthetic of a slender female form but also need to be useful and energetic, smart, accomplished.

The feminine "mystique" is shifting from Marilyn Monroe curves to skinny Minnies - the waif is popular on both sides. Why? Maybe we're just tiring of broad shoulders, muscular arms, giant breasts?

Idealized bodies:

-DaVincian proportions

-a perfect blend of masculine cut and feminine curve



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