Editor's Introduction: Beauty

The topic of beauty has received attention from contributors as diverse as evolutionary theorists, philosophers, cosmetologists, neurophysiologists studying visual pathways, architects, ethnic ideologues, fashion designers, artists, and, above all, poets. What constitutes beauty seems self-evident but the stern reminder about its residing in the eyes of the beholder shakes up our nosological confidence. We wish to simplify matters and seek a universal ideal of beauty but regional, ethnic, racial, and era-based preferences defy such effort. Moreover, there is more to beauty than its concrete incarnation in the physical beauty of man. Beauty radiates centripetally to include etiquette, speech, and even the manner of thinking that lies underneath the verbalized sentiment. And, then there is the beauty of nature and of man's creations and man's creativity. The topic is complex, vast, and a bit elusive.

Restricting ourselves to the physical beauty of human beings, especially women, we offer three book reviews to our readers. Lily Arora critically evaluates Phoebe Hyde's book The Beauty Experiment which describes the author's effort to renounce the use of cosmetics and the impact of this upon her social and emotional life. Following this Dora Liebu examines The Beauty Bias by Deborah Rhode, noting the powerful impact beauty has upon women's prospect for romantic and even employment prospects. Finally Shawn Blue discusses Ellen Sinkman's recent book The Psychology of Beauty which explores the search of literal and metaphorical beauty by utilizing mythology, popular culture, and clinical vignettes.

In closing, I wish to make two points. One, that the authors of these books and their reviewers are all women and this should help avoid literary misogyny and keeps things balance, I think. Two, that physical beauty is not merely a concern for hormone driven young adults, cosmetic industry, and poets but has considerable psychological and psychiatric implications. Do not forget tha