英语阅读：Is Barack Obama handsome?
A while ago when Barack Obama beat Hillary Clinton in the Democraticprimary, I wrote a blog to explain why it was unlikely for him to pick the
latter as his running mate. I used "handsome" to describe him, and one of the
responses was "What? Do you consider Obama handsome?"
Sure, I think he is a good-looking guy. But soon I was drowned out in the
debate as more and more people joined my challenger and questioned my aesthetic
wisdom.
So, I tried to think from the perspective of an ordinary Chinese netizen,
without the knowledge of Obama's eloquence, poise or his insight on race
relations. He may not be as eye-catching as Denzel Washington, but he can
certainly score pretty high on the point of physical attractiveness.
Surprisingly, many disagreed with me, and their thinking process was very
interesting. For example, I thought slim was good in this era of body image
consciousness, but many Chinese netizens seem to have got their standards of
beauty of black Americans from telecasts of NBA games. One said it took him a
while to recognize "black beauty" and now that Obama does not look like a
typical NBA player it is hard for him to be categorized as physically
appealing.
In fact, so many respondents cited NBA as their biggest exposure that it is
not a stretch to say people like Kobe Bryant have become the benchmark for
China's youths to size up black males. Where does that leave Will Smith, Denzel
Washington, Morgan Freeman and Hollywood's efforts in shaping global perception
of black Americans? Obviously, not half as effective as the ubiquitous
basketball player as far as China's vast basketball fan base is concerned, and
they have not even experienced the magic of Michael Jordan.
Chinese and blacks seem to occupy two ends of the aesthetic spectrum. A lot
of trends started by blacks, such as hip-hop, reached China via middlemen like
white American and Korean singers, losing much of the authenticity in the
process. Even then, it is somewhat jarring to see a Chinese youth, with
soft-toned skins and smaller features, don the XXL-sized attire of striking
colors, which compliments a black teenager so naturally.
On the other hand, martial arts flicks reach the black demographic through
mainstream channels like Blockbuster rental and mass-appeal products such as
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. It is not an exaggeration to say that the middle
ground is firmly in the hands of Middle America, whose aesthetic values serve as
a filter for exchange between non-white ethnicities and races. For example,
unless for a function of ethnic diversity, a black would not wear an African
tribal dress, nor would a Chinese put on a Tang-style costume. Most likely, they
would both sport a business suit because it is the sartorial middle ground. If
they do appear with their traditional garb, the outfit will be judged against
the suit.
For a Chinese without constant contact with or exposure to black Americans,
Obama's look can only be extrapolated and evaluated by being imagined as a white
person. It simply cannot be done. I have come upon a diary of a young Chinese
journalist who did a comparison of Condoleezza Rice and Madeleine Albright, and
it was condescendingly unfair. I guess the only black ladies familiar to a
regular guy on a Beijing street are Whitney Houston or Halle Berry.
It has dawned on me that movie star beauty is an inaccurate barometer for a
whole race. It may distort perception. The best way to get rid of
misunderstanding and prejudice is to know as many people as possible of the race
or ethnicity previously unknown to you. By then you'll be able to see Obama -
not as another Denzel Washington or Kobe Bryant - but as a charismatic
politician that he is.
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