The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1894-05-23
Physical Grace in Women.

A perfect woman should be a chef pu-
vrc of grace and refinement, and to this
end she must be exempt from toll. AS the
human form and, above all, the expression
Of the face are only the products of the
emotions which an individual oftcnest eX-
pcriencCs, a woman can only be beautiful
and graceful in person in so far as the
greater proportion Of her emotional expo
rienccs are sweet, tender and peaceful.
This is theory that Mr.. Balm has dcvel-
Oped with great fullness and clcarness. But
the emotions which toll entails in the
struggle for life are violent and strong.
Anger hatred, enthusiasm, boldness, cour-
age, these may impart strength and gran
deur to the individual, but they can never
endow her with the attractivencss of grace
The working woman grows ugly and
loses her feminine characteristics. She
loses what Is most exquisite and aesthetic
in woman. l foresee here many objec-
tons 1t is man, you say, who desires
grace in woman 1t is but another proof
of masculine egotism thus to foster idle
ness in woman in order that she may be-
come that which he specially desires. Do
not let us dignity as a natural law what
is but the outcome of masculine psychical
tastes and habits, l believe this to be
mistake. Grace in woman is not merely
the product of caprice and selfshness in
the man who chooses the prettiest woman
because she touches his sense of the beau
tiful. Grace plays a far higher role in the
social and psychical evolution of humani'
ty. 1t is an ever active and moral force,
always bencficent the fruits of which are
far greater than could be produced by any
labor by woman. Womanly grace and the
love which men bear beautiful woman
have perhaps been the origin of paternal
love and of all the other sweet and tender
feelings of which the male is capable.
Grace is the aesthetic side of weakness,
and since man seeks this quality in wom-
an it follows by the well known psychology
ical law of association that the perception
| of grace and the sweet emotions of love
become more closely connected the more
psychical progress increases. Once this
combination is fairly established all grace
full and pretty things by reason of this law
awaken the emotion of love feebly, yet in
sufficient degree that all pretty things,
be they human beings, natural objects
or artistic productions, give us pleasure,
and this pleasure is only in lesser degree
a reproduction Of the pleasures of love.
But grace, as we have just said, is the
aesthetic side of weakness. Hence the as
ISOLATION between the emotions of love and
the perception of grace becomes stronger.
1t extends itself from graceful things to
weak things, for at certain times almost
al weak things present themselves to us
lnder the aesthetic aspect of grace, so that
rs the association between these two sem
sttions widens it becomes as association
between love and weakness. Weaker crea-
lures, for example, young children, who
are par excellence the weakest of all be-
ings, awaken in us a profound sympathy,
which is but rushlight in comparison
will the intensity of the fame Of sympa-
thy which unites us to woman. We find
then that physical grace in woman is a
benefcent sunshine, calling into bloom
the softer emotions Of man. 1t would be a
great misfortune were this sunshine to be
erclolded.-Monist