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\u201cWe cannot expect any advantage from the beautiful since it serves no purpose.\u201d–Gadamer<\/em><\/p>\n Within the world of belly dance, we are constantly faced with representations of feminine beauty, which are increasingly taking over from the dance itself, to form the basis of any dancer\u2019s daily routine. This feeds into all areas of our careers: from the pressure to own designer costumes; have studio-based photo shoots; create perfect make-up; and even into the techniques themselves as we become more aware of the \u2018poses\u2019 we use as we dance. This all apparently exists in order to satisfy our audience, who seem now to expect even amateur dancers to possess perfect, flawless photographs and the latest designs from Egypt.<\/p>\n Is this really the case though? Are our audiences simply responding to what they are given and is our perception of beauty now being taken over by our need to play the cliched \u2018dancer\u2019 role?<\/p>\n In the 1950s, Gadamer discussed the role of beauty extensively, claiming that beauty itself derives pleasure from being represented and that the presence of beauty distracts us from our everyday existence. Conversely, having been told that they have to be beautiful in order to be accepted, women have had to accept that the only pleasure they will derive from this role is that of appreciation from others, since the very reality of being beautiful would seem to disallow any other ability or worth to society. Many among us have judged a woman as a \u201cbimbo\u201d based solely on the fact that she happened to be exceptionally attractive! Further writings of Gadamer explain:\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cEven for us, the beautiful is convincingly defined as something that enjoys universal recognition and assent. Thus, it belongs to our natural sense of the beautiful that we cannot ask why it pleases us.\u201d <\/em>\u00a0 The two following quotations directly challenge the notion of man and woman as polar opposites (heteropolar<\/em>) in society, condemning women as one-dimensional beings:<\/p>\n \u201cOnce a label has been applied, it is virtually impossible to remove it, or to change the opinion, regardless of how accurate it may or may not be.\u201d<\/em>
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As women and performers, why cannot we see beyond physical representation, when we, too, are trying our hardest to achieve such beauty in our own lives? Such hypocrisy ensures that we can never escape the limitations that society and, thus, we place these same limitations upon our own bodies.\u00a0 Within the symbolic world of performance art, it often seems that we have little choice but to play the roles for which the audience has paid and expects to see.<\/p>\n\n
\n—Holly Hughes<\/strong> in \u201cAngry Women.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n
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