This post is intended as a lament of sorts, a lament for something in the culture that is dying and may never been seen again.
Pretty, pretty is dying.
People will define pretty differently. For the purposes of this piece, I define pretty as a mutually enriching balanced combination of beauty and projected innocence.
Once upon a time, women wanted to project an innocence. I am not idealizing another age and I have no illusions about the virtues of our grandparents, concupiscence being what it is. But some things were different in the back then. First and foremost, many beautiful women, whatever the state of their souls, still wished to project a public innocence and virtue. And that combination of beauty and innocence is what I define as pretty.
By nature, generally when men see this combination in women it brings out their better qualities, their best in fact. That special combination of beauty and innocence, the pretty inspires men to protect and defend it.
Young women today do not seem to aspire to pretty, they prefer to be regarded as hot. Hotness is something altogether different. When women want to be hot instead of pretty, they must view themselves in a certain way and consequently men view them differently as well.
As I said, >>>>Continue Reading >>>>
December 21, 2011 at 5:16 pm
I love the poem "Pretty" by Stevie Smith (1902-1971):
"Why is the word pretty so underrated?
In November the leaf is pretty when it falls.
The stream grows deep in the woods after rain.
And in the pretty pool the pike stalks.."
I agree. Hot=use Pretty=beauty
December 21, 2011 at 6:28 pm
Thank you for this post. My heart is touched.
This post brings back bittersweet memories of the time my late father sat me down and reminded me of the importance of being classy and honoring the "pretty lady" God created me to be. Thankfully my Dad was convicted and wasn't afraid of being a strong father. Simply, I am a better woman because of him.
Now I need to go freshen up – you really touched an emotional chord.
December 22, 2011 at 6:46 pm
Before the anti-Christ, comes the anti-Mary.
Feminism and Liberalism are the anti-Mary.
Mary was beautiful.
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December 22, 2011 at 6:46 pm
Formerly SMCTOD.
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December 22, 2011 at 8:27 pm
"First and foremost, many beautiful women, whatever the state of their souls, still wished to project a public innocence and virtue. And that combination of beauty and innocence is what I define as pretty."
This quote reminds me of something I was discussing with one of my children. My teenaged daughters like to watch movies from the 1930s. They are under no illusions about the private lives of Hollywood, even then. But, as my daughter said, she preferred Hollywood when it was being hypocritical, compared to the bare-all attitudes of today.
So, yes, once upon a time, whatever the state of their souls, women DID still want to project virtue. Things have changed.
December 28, 2011 at 5:03 am
Great article… it is truly sad that our culture has lost pretty. And I agree with Anonymous; I prefer the hypocritical Hollywood too, especially when it comes to homosexuality.
As a young girl myself, a word I like to use is "class" when it comes to clothing. Classiness and dignity.
You don't want to show off everything; no one wants to see it and the people who do shouldn't!
Let's bring back prettiness, virtue, class, and dignity, for both sexes.