Elves

[elfy]

I think it's hard to imagine a race that looks over all more beautiful, I mean, like elves.
Sometimes I try to imagine what needs to be different to make someone look beautiful. Sure, there are lots of ugly people, but I mean, what makes an elf even more beautiful then a beautiful human? Maybe it's a charisma thing.
But I think, it could in general be that elves have very symetrical faces. Because thats what we recognise as beautiful often. Maybe symmetry plays a big role in elvish culture?

/random rant

Comments

[elfy.livejournal.com]

jupp :)

[safti]

I've seen people draw elves that were unattractive, just for the record - not badly drawn, just unattractive [to me].

I personally find the inherent grace and the ears (mmm, pointy *nibble*) more attractive than anything else - all the other things I can think of that are associated with elves that I find attractive (slenderness, long hair, clear and pale skin) can be found in humans. I think a part of it may be my affinity for lean and pretty boys, and elven males are both more often than not. I'm not a huge fan of symmetry, no more so than I am a fan of asymmetry.

Just some thoughts. :-

[elfy.livejournal.com]

Did you ever take a photo where someone directly looks in the camera, took one half, dublicated and mirrored it and put it over the other half of the face? So that you see how he would look if both of his face-halfs would look the same?
If you do this with both parts you'll get quite different results for one site or the other. Often, when we say someone is goodlooking, the result for both halfs is quite similar.
Thats not a *works every time* thing, but a thing you can say in general (at least thats what I learnt in school :)).

[sic.livejournal.com]

Dazu fällt mir Lords and Ladies ein (Pratchett). Dort wird auch beschrieben, daß Elfen auf Menschen schön und unnahbar wirken, aber in Wirklichkeit ist das nur Fassade, die durch die natürliche Magie der Elfen entsteht.

Der Symmetriegedanke ist aber auch nicht von der Hand zu weisen.
Je nach Art der beschriebenen Elfenkultur wird ja auch die Architektur und die Kunstfertigkeit beschrieben, und meist sind die Abbildungen der Werke sehr übereinstimmend, schlank, natürliche Formen und eben symmetrisch. Sicher, das kann auch daher kommen, daß wir automatisch die symmetrische Form als ideal ansehen, und daher auch gerne so konstruieren. Trotzdem eine schöne Parallele.

[elfy.livejournal.com]

Bin zu faul das nochmal zu schreiben, schau einfach mal bei meinem Commentar darüber, bei safti :) Also, wie ich auf diese Symmetriesache komme.

[dotintheshark.livejournal.com]

I think whether an elf (or anyone else, for that matter) is considered beautiful depends on contemporary beauty standards. Sure, now elves are depicted lean and slender, tall and graceful. Like your average model should look like. But they used to be a lot stockier in much earlier times. Since they are just a reflection of what people in their time consider close to perfection, the only thing common to all depictions of elves are the pointy ears.

A good example is the art of Wendy Pini, in my opinion. While one could argue that her early style developped greatly over the course of the years, I think if one takes a closer look one cannot fail to notice that even the Wolf Riders have come to be more slender, more graceful than in the early comics. The High Ones were always lean and tall, but the Wolf Riders have become taller and more delicate, too.

[safti]

I do highly enjoy the early Wolfriders, personally. *grins*

I'ven't seen much of her more recent work - or, for that matter, finished reading all of the Wolfrider work in the first place, so I can't really say much else. [Though I stand by my *nibble*.]

Thing that confuses me, though, is where the tall came from. Until recently, I was mostly of the understanding that elves - no matter how fey or lovely or what - were short. Short like the Wolfriders, even short like 3rd edition D&D [the average elf stands about 5', according to the Player's Handbook, some subtypes are shorter]. *shrugs* Another hit of modern culture, I suppose . . .

[elfy.livejournal.com]

I'd say that has two reasons: Tolkien and old irish/scottisch etc. tales. The fey back then were of many different shapes, ranging from little fey, tiny and with wings like insects or butterflies to the trolls and dwarfes - who are also 'elves' - to the sidhe and such, who are tall and slender and beyond human beatuy.
But I think the todays ideal is mostly because of Tolkien, I'd say.
So, to be exact the short type of elf, the 'childsize' is new. At least I'd think so.
See more in above comment.

[elfy.livejournal.com]

I think that Wendy Pinis way to draw elves is also a development in her drawing skills. And, I don't think her elves are meant to be beautiful in the usual 'elves are more beautiful than humans' way. Just look at the High Ones - they seem to be the 'typical elf', as the Wolfriders and the Go-Backs are results of a harsh life in the woods or the snow, where being small was more effective.
And sure itdepends on beauty standarts, back in Rubens time everyone would have thought an elf is to thin ^_~. But that doesn't matter much, because I said there beauty may lay in their symetrical face. At least a normal human sees a symetrical face as a beautiful one. And I think it's a charisma thing.
The slenderness and tallness, as written below, is mainly a result of old tales and Tolkien. IMHO.

[dotintheshark.livejournal.com]

But that doesn't matter much, because I said there beauty may lay in their symetrical face. At least a normal human sees a symetrical face as a beautiful one.

Have to disagree with you on this point. Just why people in the western sphere of the world think of a certain symmetry as beautiful has a lot to do with our culture. Surely you don't mean to imply that South African tribes, for example, are not "normal humans"? In some of their cultures someone who is obese is considered beautiful - that's opposite of most western viewpoints and is in direct correlation to their culture.

And I think it's a charisma thing.

I certainly agree. ^_^ People considered ugly by most standards will still have a huge following if they exude charisma. What most people find so fascinating about elves is not their physical appearance, I think. It's more their otherworldliness (in the truest sense of the word), their mystical origin, their magic.

[elfy.livejournal.com]

Explain to me why you quote this part about the symetrical face and then state that in African tribes to be obese is beautiful? ^^;; That looks as if a obese person couldn't have a symmetrical face and be beautiful because of that... ^^;;
I just said that symmetry is often (not always and sure there are people who see it diffrent) considered beautyful and not that a normal human likes tall and slender types. I am aware that there are many cultures where being slender is considered being poor.
The symmetry thing is something natural, like the golden section (?? Mean den Goldenen Schnitt) just works for every human in general.
Thats at least what I was taught.

[safti]

I do highly enjoy the early Wolfriders, personally. *grins*

I'ven't seen much of her more recent work - or, for that matter, finished reading all of the Wolfrider work in the first place, so I can't really say much else. [Though I stand by my *nibble*.]

Thing that confuses me, though, is where the tall came from. Until recently, I was mostly of the understanding that elves - no matter how fey or lovely or what - were short. Short like the Wolfriders, even short like 3rd edition D&D [the average elf stands about 5', according to the Player's Handbook, some subtypes are shorter]. *shrugs* Another hit of modern culture, I suppose . . .

[(Anonymous)]

don't you people know there's no such thing as elves... even if there were, who has ever seen one, so how do we know they're so beautiful?