Hmm. Reminds me of a bit of dialogue in the novel GATES OF FIRE, a dramatization of Thermopylae by Steven Pressman. In the scene, a Spartan warrior opines that there are two kinds of female beauty, the "beauty of Aphrodite" (soft, pale, cosmetically enhanced) favored by most Greeks and the "beauty of Artemis" (athletic, good muscle tone) favored in Sparta. As for which is ultimately superior, well, we all know Helen was a Spartan.
So perhaps the Trojan Paris had Spartan tastes, and actually preferred Helen's looks to Aphrodite's. Naturally, he was wise enough not to say so in front of the goddess....
ObGlorantha: Hmm, standards of female (or male) beauty. What are they in various cultures, and (as Mr. Weihe pointed out in the part I snipped), how influenced are evaluations by a girl's/guy's wealth (whether in gold or herdbeasts)?
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