Annotations pt. 2

They say that sex sells and if that’s indeed the case as it seems to be, one must come to understand what it is that appeals to a man and a woman in order to apply it to a successful marketing strategy. With the help of these next few articles, I will attempt to contribute to an already ongoing and often hotly debated argument about what seems to make both genders tick in the realm of sexual attraction.

Dr. Nina Buar. “Some Like Them Hot: How Germans Construct Male Attractiveness.” Technical University of Berlin (2006)

In this study, a group of women in Germany ranging from 16-92 years of age were tested to see what traits they felt were most desirable from men. They are presented a series of photos in order to determine physical attractiveness and they were also given a questionnaire asking them to rank certain qualities such as personality and level of income. What also comes into play here is how their culture plays a part in deciding what is considered attractive. Factors such as religion and upbringing she feels, is going to contribute to her test subjects decisions. Dr. Buar also touches on how media has played a role in deciding how the ideal German male should look and act.
It seems as though Dr. Buar’s goal is to determine how the media and German history have played a factor in deciding what an attractive male should be and look. Her methodology seems to be geared towards how much culture plays a part in how one defines attractiveness, which would explain why each culture has its own standards of beauty. In my field of research, it provides an excellent source of information in regards to a group outside of the United States. It provides me a glimpse of how some Europeans define beauty in comparison to America’s perception.

McCormick, Brian Emerson .Arousal in Social Context: “The Social Basis of Perceiving Others’ Erotic Relevance and Erotic Desirability” Rutgers University – New Brunswick (2002)

In Brian McCormick’s article, he attempts to solve the question of what it is that makes us desire one another and if the answer lies more than skin deep, what else is there. Throughout his essay, he explores the various factors of desire based on the writings of other scholars. His two conclusions are, as stated in his summary, are: “(1) erotically ir/relevant to the viewer and (2)
erotically un/desirable to the viewer.”
Similar to what I am attempting to do, his approach involves using comparative historical evidence in order to find a pattern and come to a conclusion. His work helps my research in the sense that it allows me to approach an idea from a different perspective. His entry is different from my other articles because he is attempting to examine male-female attractions on a grand scale rather than by just focusing on a particular culture or group.

Some of my other articles that I’ve chosen for my research topic include:

Oliver, Mary Beth. ”The impact of sex and gender role self-perception on affective reactions to different types of film” (Jan. 1998)

Gender Roles in Music Videos

Dawkins, Richard: The Selfish Gene: Oxford University Press, USA; 2 edition (October 25, 1990)