Infrequent Nights

While there are some indicators of beauty which seem to exist as culturally independent truisms, there are others which are specific to certain regions, classes, and cultures. Here in Taiwan fair skin is a highly prized feature sought after by most image conscious women. These women are willing to submit themselves to various inconveniences, and discomforts to either make their skin appear paler, or at least prevent it from becoming darkened. The majority of women here use parasols when walking out of doors. This is an understandable tradition, as it not only keeps one pale but it also helps keep one cool. However I have observed women taking their parasol (which doubles as an umbrella on rainy days) out of their bags, opening it up, and holding it above their heads so that they may cross a three meter long un-shaded space without having the sun’s direct rays fall upon their skin. This strikes me as rather inconvenient and even slightly obsessive. Others wear scarves over their faces and seemingly ridiculously large sun visors atop their heads. Both are again somewhat practical as the scarves help filter out pollution, and the visors do provide some pleasant shade. Still others, while riding on their ubiquitous scooters, wear a jacket backwards to cover their arms, and any chest that may be exposed by a low-rising shirt. This one just strikes me as being an uncomfortable hassle. However, having not ridden on a scooter here, there may be some practical reasoning which escapes me. For those who are not content with their present complexion there are a multitude of creams and other medicinals available to help lighten one’s skin to a more eye-pleasing shade. These are aggressively marketed on television, in the MRT, and on billboards about town.

What I find interesting about this particular aesthetic is what it has to say about Taiwanese culture. The particular traits which we find attractive express certain values held by our culture. In the West, unlike here in Taiwan, being tanned is a highly sought after attribute. People go to great lengths to attain, and subsequently retain, a tanned complexion. Entire industries are predicated upon Western individuals' desire to be tanned. This hasn’t always been the case. In the past the West’s perception of beautiful skin was more similar to that held here in Taiwan: Fairer is better. A fair complexion used to indicate that one had no need to work out of doors. The labouring masses were destined to darken as they worked on fields and farms. Upper-class individuals could afford to avoid the sun and out of doors as much as they pleased. At some point in time in the West this perception changed. I posit that the rise of indoor working environments and sheltered late twentieth-century living gave rise to the attractiveness of the tan. A good tan now subconsciously informs us that an individual has either the time or money necessary to lay about in the sun or in a tanning booth acquiring their attractive complexion. An uneven ‘Farmer’s’ tan is not considered attractive. But a surfer’s consistent complexion tells us that he can afford to spend hours out in the sun with his shirt off enjoying life instead of being locked up in an office trying to pay the bills. The same logic applies to long nails, and bound feet. An individual with long nails obviously doesn’t need to pick cabbage for a living. It is a visual marker of class status. Bound feet are an especially interesting marker, as they essentially cripple a woman so as to indicate the status of her family. This crippling, and to modern eyes unappealing, body modification was highly sought after by contemporary Han Chinese men as an attractive physical attribute.

I reckon the Taiwanese attraction to fair skin stems from the same initial reasoning as the, now outdated, Western attraction to fair skin did. Fair skin used to mean upper class. In the same way that renaissance paintings glorify the beauty of larger pear-shaped women, so do Taiwanese ad campaigns glorify the beauty of pale skinned models. However the renaissance masterpieces were painted during an era of scant resources in Europe. To be large was the exception. Here in Taiwan it is now easy to avoid the sun at almost all times. Most people spend the majority of their day indoors or at least in the shade, which is very cleverly assured via the local sub-tropical architecture. Thus individuals, to be an exceptional beauty, must go to great lengths to become paler than would naturally appear. They avoid all contact with sunlight, they use whitening creams, and generously apply light shades of makeup. The result is an interesting visual spectacle and a cultural marker which can help us appreciate the historical background for our, sometimes seemingly arbitrary, perceptions of beauty.