Spring Break
The Daily OrangeResearch claims standards of beauty based on evolutionary ideals
By Colin Dabkowski
Posted: 4/22/04, 2:12 AM EST Section: Feature
There are few better proving grounds for Thornhill's theory than the SU Quad on a spring day. Yesterday, a balmy 73 degrees, the Quad overflowed with young bodies and their grass-stained observers. In the hallowed tradition that is Quad people-watching, certain bodies get preferential treatment. Tall guys with muscular arms and taut, clear skin get more attention than the short, pudgy, pasty sort. Women with symmetrical faces, large breasts and blonde hair get more attention than women wearing glasses and baggy clothes. In the season of skin, Thornhill's hard-earned observations seem painfully obvious.
Most students gave generic answers about what they found attractive as they people-watched with friends. "The first thing I look for is proportion," said Gary Thomas, a freshman biology and psychology major. "Like, if they've got a big ass and everything else is small, that's out of proportion."
His friend Marisa Wolff, also a freshman biology major, cited hygiene as a major factor in attraction but also noted the importance of an oft-overlooked aspect of an attractive face. "The eyebrow really makes or breaks the relationship, guy or girl," Wolff said.
Another group of students across the Quad gave the typical dating-show responses: eyes, arms ("not bony, but not Popeye"), height, "manageable breasts" and legs. "Once, I wouldn't date a guy because he had bad legs," said Amy Kaufmann, a senior advertising and psychology major.
When she thought about it, Kaufmann concluded that she probably liked muscular legs because they meant a healthy guy, but health was the furthest thing from her mind when she saw a guy in shorts halfway across the Quad. "Now that guy has nice legs," she said excitedly as her friends snickered.
Kaufmann's reaction to bulging calf muscles, while she may not know it, may actually be a psychological reward for obeying her evolutionary drives. According to Thornhill, when you see something that you are programmed to react well to (youth, muscles, breasts or pecs), your brain rewards you with a "beauty experience" because the appearance of these factors are actually "ancestral cues of promised evolutionary function." In other words, muscles mean fitness, fitness means health and health is a proven evolutionary indicator of reproductive value - that's why we're happy when we see hotties on the Quad.
Most students gave generic answers about what they found attractive as they people-watched with friends. "The first thing I look for is proportion," said Gary Thomas, a freshman biology and psychology major. "Like, if they've got a big ass and everything else is small, that's out of proportion."
His friend Marisa Wolff, also a freshman biology major, cited hygiene as a major factor in attraction but also noted the importance of an oft-overlooked aspect of an attractive face. "The eyebrow really makes or breaks the relationship, guy or girl," Wolff said.
Another group of students across the Quad gave the typical dating-show responses: eyes, arms ("not bony, but not Popeye"), height, "manageable breasts" and legs. "Once, I wouldn't date a guy because he had bad legs," said Amy Kaufmann, a senior advertising and psychology major.
When she thought about it, Kaufmann concluded that she probably liked muscular legs because they meant a healthy guy, but health was the furthest thing from her mind when she saw a guy in shorts halfway across the Quad. "Now that guy has nice legs," she said excitedly as her friends snickered.
Kaufmann's reaction to bulging calf muscles, while she may not know it, may actually be a psychological reward for obeying her evolutionary drives. According to Thornhill, when you see something that you are programmed to react well to (youth, muscles, breasts or pecs), your brain rewards you with a "beauty experience" because the appearance of these factors are actually "ancestral cues of promised evolutionary function." In other words, muscles mean fitness, fitness means health and health is a proven evolutionary indicator of reproductive value - that's why we're happy when we see hotties on the Quad.
