Western and Eastern: different standards of Asian beauty?? Options

[JakeCutter]

Western people with yellow fever seem not to be able to tell between different kinds of Asian looks.
But in general they seem to think more markedly "Asian" features are unique or something. On the other hand, for Asians, they're just ordinary.
A woman like Lucy Liu, a Westerner might say she looks exotic, but an Easterner might say she looks like a country farm wife.

The two girls don't really look that different. The first girl has that wide-face look, which isn't attractive in either hemisphere.

I have to agree with this theory. It's one of those cases of "opposites attract", in this case physical rather than behavioral. The more different something is, the more exotic, although I don't believe unique = better. Could we say that it isn't just Westerners that go for different looks? I've seen many cases of people from the third world attracted to stereotypical "American" features.

NEVERMIND. Although I wouldn't consider her beautiful, either..

This post has been edited by JakeCutter: Apr 7 2011, 04:50 PM

[chiuchimu]

Just like the guys signature above me. Kind of makes me want to vomit.

I never heard you say sh!t about all the people with SNSD, Kara or other K-media signatures. That's been going on for years and not a peep from you. Now I put up Jpop Idols and bam! it sick, perverse and makes you want to vomit?

How Korean of you.

[Henry123]

Hey boys and girls, I'm new on here! Here's an issue I've been increasingly noticing..

Ok, so years of living in a Western country have led me to believe that there are two standards of Asian beauty: one for Asians, one for some Westerners (especially ones who are "into" the Asian look). Is the Westerner's brainwashing solely down to the media (with celebs like Lucy Liu), or they just simply have a fetish for the "common" Asian look?


But do you believe this phenomea is real? Why do you think this is?

Keep in mind the notion of beauty can vary from country to country or ethnic group to ethnic group (not just between "Asian" and "Western").

[ttocs]

I have to agree with this theory. It's one of those cases of "opposites attract", in this case physical rather than behavioral. The more different something is, the more exotic, although I don't believe unique = better. Could we say that it isn't just Westerners that go for different looks? I've seen many cases of people from the third world attracted to stereotypical "American" features.

And I think the general consensus is that most people find LL ... homely. I have a lot of friends who Watch Grey's Anatomy and that's one thing they can all agree on.

Lucy Liu is not in Grey's Anatomy. That homely Asian Woman is Sandra Oh.

[Pessoptimistic]

I never heard you say sh!t about all the people with SNSD, Kara or other K-media signatures. That's been going on for years and not a peep from you. Now I put up Jpop Idols and bam! it sick, perverse and makes you want to vomit?

How Korean of you.

relax there, bud. don't take it so personally.

[JaM]

Nobody cares? Ok then. No more pictures.

This post has been edited by JaM: Sep 26 2011, 12:02 PM

[Tabs]

But do you believe this phenomea is real? Why do you think this is?

In my experience white people generally have poor taste/an inability to recognize attractiveness in Asians, and Asians generally have poor taste/an inability to recognize attractiveness in white people.

Westernized Asians are a bit of an exception (being that most have been raised looking for the same standard of beauty in white people that white people themselves are raised to look for), but not always.

This post has been edited by Tabs: Sep 26 2011, 03:04 PM

[SemperFidelis]

In my experience white people generally have poor taste/an inability to recognize attractiveness in Asians, and Asians generally have poor taste/an inability to recognize attractiveness in white people.

Westernized Asians are a bit of an exception (being that most have been raised looking for the same standard of beauty in white people that white people themselves are raised to look for), but not always.

what is seen as attractive is unique to each person, so how can you say someone has a poor ability to recognize attractiveness if thats what they find attractive?

[samnang]

left: asian video game character designed by a westerner
right: how the character would be designed if intended to suit asian (japanese in particular) tastes



This post has been edited by samnang: Sep 26 2011, 07:14 PM

[Tabs]

what is seen as attractive is unique to each person

That's true to a point, though I think it's silly to argue that there isn't a standard of beauty for most cultures that the majority of those within it accept. i.e. If you asked 100% of white people whether they think Angelina Jolie is beautiful, you'd probably get about 70%+ who would say that she is. If you asked 100% of white people whether they think Rosie O'Donnell is beautiful, you wouldn't get the same 70%+. People differ individually in their tastes, but we all operate for the most part according to our own culture's standard of beauty.

[Imtherealsugarba...]

real asians r ugly before plastic surgery or makeup
so they dont look exotic to other asians
asians like the fake cute asians with circle lenses and their faces covered with 6 layers of m.a.c foundation
have you seen snsd and akb48 pictures before they got famous? oh the horror
americans arent use to those real asian features so it looks exotic/sexy to us
but to ppl who are use to seeing asians everyday its ugly

This post has been edited by Imtherealsugarbaby: Sep 28 2011, 11:41 PM

[Paracelsus]

This all has to do with the white man's deep desire to empathize with the Asian race, coupled with the white societal construct of "Asian-ness" driven in by past caricatures of Asians... caricatures that highlight and exaggerate the worst and most common features of Asians. In a sense, they force themselves to believe Asian features are hot/sexy/attractive out of compassion.

This post has been edited by Paracelsus: Sep 29 2011, 12:27 PM

[fireplant]

left: asian video game character designed by a westerner
right: how the character would be designed if intended to suit asian (japanese in particular) tastes

white people values: predators are right, prey are wrong.

[JaM]

left: asian video game character designed by a westerner
right: how the character would be designed if intended to suit asian (japanese in particular) tastes

The left face actually looks somewhat European, but with exaggerated Asian features on top. To me, the left one also looks more mature - despite the huge boobs on the right one. The right one is slightly more 'cartoony' overall.

I would think that an East Asian cartoonist would try to draw a figure which represents the qualities he would like to show, but he would not be interested in showing any particular "asianess" in the face, while a Western cartoonist would try to show the stereotypical features that a Westerner would associate with Asians, which wouldn't be the soft facial features, but the eyes and cheekbones primarily. IE, the Westerner would be trying to draw a person who would be recognised as Asian by Westerners, while the Asian would perhaps try to draw a person with certain individual features which wouldn't bee needed to be seen as stereotypically Asian.

The Westerner would draw a "generic Asian", while the Asian would be drawing a specific person.

This is actually not the same as beauty standards, it's more like one picture is based on a stereotypically exaggerated view, the other is based on individual beauty and looks. It's like those old Japanese drawings of Portuguese merchants which shows them with huge noses. They were trying to spell out: "This is a Portuguese!" I think it's the same with the western cartoon artist, he would like to spell out "This is an Asian" with no ambiguity, and since he probably doesn't know the finer and more subtle features, he just draw based on those two or three stereotypical features - and end up with a caricature, which looks like a hybrid - in other words, a European face morphed into an Asian version of a European face!

Edit: oddly, the pic is gone? I had a pic here, but since it's gone I also removed the text as well.

This post has been edited by JaM: Oct 1 2011, 06:42 AM

[fireplant]

^no you misunderstand. Enunch didn't govern, they were the emperor's eyes and ears. They were most loyal to the emperor because they had no family of their own.

[SkyBurial]

hmm okay... you obviously have a problem with what I am saying... then answer this..

why were eunuchs often the most powerful in the Asian societies? we all know eunuchs are the most unlucky have nots. what does this say about the mindset of the rulers of Asian societies who were responsible for their empowerment, and about the people whom rulers would surround themselves with..? these people who would use their position and power to rape scores of the most beautiful Asian women....

You do realize that eunuchs are usually castrated right?

This post has been edited by SkyBurial: Sep 30 2011, 03:04 PM

[fireplant]

^it was very rare in Chinese history that eunuch's ever wielded administrative or political power. Those were anomalies. There are strong taboos on what eunuch's can and cannot do. They're more like a kind of ancient commissar (or HR lackey) who had absolute loyalty to the royal bloodline. 再大的太监，也只是个阉人而已。

[machpunch777]

left: asian video game character designed by a westerner
right: how the character would be designed if intended to suit asian (japanese in particular) tastes

ill take the left one. I love the tomboy look

[1800geico]

Post Modified

This post has been edited by 1800geico: Oct 2 2011, 09:05 PM

[SkyBurial]

I thought you were cool til I see this.
What a two face!

Lol, who takes the Imtherealsugarbaby, seriously? That person is a joke lulz.