| Every age had given its fair share of | | | | surprising are the statistics, which |
| accolades to the beautiful men and women | | | | showcase the winning saga of all the |
| of the world. Fictions and fairy tales | | | | so-called unsightly men and ugly women |
| are no exception either. The proverbial | | | | of the world. |
| beauty of Helen, Cleopatra, Juliet, | | | | While peoples desire to be more |
| Nefertiti, Cinderella and Snow White | | | | beautiful is justified, it is also true |
| cannot wane with time, nor can it slip | | | | that ugliness is never a handicap. We |
| into oblivion. Good looks have been the | | | | are often baffled with some trivia |
| cynosure of numerous human | | | | claiming that good-looking men get |
| actionslegendary love stories were made | | | | better jobs and salaries than the ugly |
| and nations were ravaged in wars, but | | | | men, and pretty women get more handsome |
| beauty never stopped bewitching the | | | | raises than their uglier counterpart. No |
| human race. | | | | matter what amount of truth is there in |
| On the flip side, the not-so-pretty | | | | such claims, it is as true as it can get |
| people have consistently been pushed | | | | that many of the ugly people have made |
| aside into the dark alleys of obscurity | | | | it to the news. Take for instance, |
| and ridicule. They have always been | | | | Prince Charles, Mick Jagger, Francis |
| portrayed in shades of gray as vamps, | | | | Ford Coppola, Mike Tyson, Camilla |
| villains or the bad guy. But who or what | | | | Parker, Woody Allen, Eleanor Roosevelt |
| decides ugliness, or if at all this is | | | | and more. All of them have struck gold |
| required, would be another issue of | | | | in their own individual ways. This only |
| course. Nevertheless, art, literature | | | | goes to show that looks are never |
| and history bear ample testimony to the | | | | deterrents to fame or success. Who would |
| fact that the ill-favored faces have | | | | mind an ugly face when there is enough |
| been the object of scorn and despise for | | | | virtue in the other aspects of the |
| reasons quite unreasonable to sanity. | | | | person? Possibly none. |
| Like we all know, beauty lies in the | | | | Fair or dark, fat or thin, perfect or |
| eyes of the beholder, but whose eyes is | | | | grotesque, earning a name for oneself |
| it anyway? Are these the eyes of the | | | | does not rest with the face alone. While |
| socio-cultural construct, which entails | | | | a pretty face can of course be a |
| beauty is all about face? Or are they | | | | vantage, it is never the be all and end |
| eyes of the thought that connotes the | | | | all of making a mark. Stripping off all |
| archetypal white is beautiful and black | | | | socio-cultural constructs, what |
| is ugly notion? Answers are not exactly | | | | ultimately shines through is that the |
| what we are looking for here. Much to | | | | ugly ducklings of the world can indeed |
| the contrary, it throws up more | | | | make it big in every way! |
| questions before us. And even more | | | | |