Do you think beauty has fixed standards? It’s a big NO. Beauty is diverse. All countries have beauty definitions of their own. Women everywhere are expected to meet those requirements, which can sometimes be pressurising.
A single word “beauty” has many concepts, standards and meanings to understand. One such concept is the Italian Beauty Standards.
You might be familiar with the beauty standards in your country, but do you know what Italian Beauty is? Italians are known for their kind and friendly conduct. Their inner personality is also a part of their beauty.
Dark hair, Dark eyes, Tanned skin, Feminine Clothes, slim body, la bella figura are some of the popular Italian beauty standards. Explore interesting facts on beauty standards in Italy.
List of Italian Beauty Standards:
La Bella translated to “beauty” is a bit different in Italy when compared to its Western concept. These artistic souls also have a certain set of beauty standards which they consider as attractive. Let’s check them out:
1. Dark hair:
Beginning with the top most feature, Italians consider dark, long hair appealing. Non frizzy, soft hair form their beauty standard. Moreover, they also fancy a messy hairdo. So a messy bun or a messy ponytail can be more Italian.
2. Dark eyes:
Being an attractive Italian is characterized by having dark, lovely eyes. So, if you have dark brown or black eyeballs, then you meet one of their beauty standards. Such eyes should also have an intense stare, since these are mostly preferred by them.
3. Tanned skin:
As against pale skin being favoured elsewhere, a tanned skin is charming for the Italians. They like a warmer look, much like a light golden one.
This sun kissed look matches perfectly with a dark hue of the eyes and the hair. Such a balanced tone they adore!
4. Feminine clothes:
Women, in Italy are adorable when they put-on feminine clothes. Wearing manly clothes is not for Italian women.
As women are required to accept their feminine traits in Italy, they also have to do so when it comes to their appearance. And not to forget their well-known maxi dresses. They are adorably feminine!
5. Slim body:
Italian men prefer slim women. Women with extra pounds are left with no option, but to reduce their weight. Not just a slim body, but a large bosom with a slim body is considered ideal. At times, this creates a negative impact on women, making them feel less valued.
It doesn’t end here, curves on the body would be great say the Italians. This doesn’t mean you should have an Hour-Glass figure. But their definition of a perfect body is “a slim, curvy body with large busts.”
6. La Bella Figura:
La Bella Figura literally means “the beautiful figure” or can also mean a “fine appearance.” It is understood in two different ways.
One is what is apparent, that is to be physically beautiful. While the other meaning relates to her personality and her behaviour.
She is supposed to be bold, kind, generous and polite. All combined, she needs to be elegant inwardly and outwardly.
7. Natural beauty wins:
Women these days apply make-up to look beautiful and hide their insecurities. But in Italy, a woman treasures her natural beauty.
She doesn’t go for artificial beauty, but rather loves what God has gifted her with. She is confident with her looks, and avoids faking it with make-up.
Alongside, high cheekbones and a small nose are also beauty standards the Italians prefer. These are the beauty concepts of the modern Italy. Now let’s look at some of the Italian Renaissance Beauty Standards:
Italian Renaissance Beauty Standards:
The Italian Renaissance Beauty Standards are kinda the opposite of the modern ones. In those days, when cosmetics weren’t available, women chose dangerous means to look attractive.
Some of those means sound weird and could cause damages. But they considered beauty their utmost possession.
1. A pale, ruddy skin:
Modern Italians want a tanned skin tone, whereas, a pale skin tone was wished by women in the Renaissance period. Ladies with pale skin and rosy cheeks were desired by men.
Consequently, to get that rosy tint, women took the help of leeches. These leeches sucked their blood, as a result leaving off rosy cheeks.
Whoa! That’s dangerous! And one of the ways to have a pale skin was to cover yourself with flour. Not a dangerous one, but strange.
2. Rounded body:
Chubby women looked gorgeous to Italian Renaissance men. A slim body is pleasing in this era, but a rounded one was beautiful back then.
A rounded figure meant a healthy woman. To achieve such a body shape, they ate foods that would help gain weight and get plumpy.
Moreover, a rounded body with a small bust, was the ideal body type.
3. Blonde hair:
What did they do if they didn’t have blonde hair naturally? They managed to get them through freaky ways again. Sitting under the sun for hours and also using solutions containing soda won them blonde hair.
This caused hair damage, but it was fine until blonde hair was achieved. At the same time, they also made sure that the sun doesn’t come in contact with their skin. Otherwise their pale skin would be a tanned one.
4. Dusky eyes:
The want of dark, intense eyes hasn’t changed even in modern Italy. In those days, there weren’t any coloured lenses, but what the women did was put ink drops into their eyes.
That’s a beauty madness, one can say. This would also sometimes cause lose of eyesight, but they didn’t give a damn about it. All they wanted is to look charming.
Besides these beauty requirements, a woman in the Italian Renaissance period was also desired to have a hairless body and a high hairline. No doubt, they indulged in all sorts of unusual ways to obtain these as well.
Conclusion:
Reaching the end of this article has probably got you into thinking how dangerous beauty standards can be.
Italian Beauty Standards and Italian Renaissance Beauty Standards stand apart when it comes to their definition of attractive women.
However, be it any of these, it is women who are judged on the basis of such standards. And this leads to sexualizing her body.
The ultimate goal of beauty standards is to grab men’s attention. Let’s take a moment to think what’s in doing it? It’s just an invitation to body shaming and unwanted remarks. Everyone is beautiful in their own way and let that sink in!
