White skin

[roddy]

Do you ever see any pretty Asian tanned-skinned girl?

Yes

white girls don't look pretty if their skins look too translucent

Yes they do.

Depends on the face, of course . . .

Roddy

[yangguang]

Hello again.

It seems that this thread is still alive.

As a Non-Asian, this topic still invokes my curiosity. I have observed this for a while among Asians, yet I have never seen it as a strange issue. Even though I can see the logic of this for East Asians among themselves, I have wondered how this has affected how other races are viewed in general.

I have experienced and observed countless situations in which skin tone may have played a role in the interactions between East Asians and Non-Asians.

Could this be relative to the role lighter complexion has played in Chinese/East Asian society?

[Ian_Lee]

Actually Chinese people have been encountering with other races for millenium.

In Tang Dynasty, there was Foreigners' Quarter in the capital Changan (present day Xian) where tens of thousands of Persians, Arabs, and maybe Africans or even Romans had resided there owing to the enormous trade flow along the Silk Road.

In Sung Dynasty, there was a Jew's Quarter in the capital city Kaifeng. In coastal cities like Guangzhou, a lot of Arabs did business and even settled there. Prophet Mohammad's grandson was buried in Guangzhou after his death.

Of course, extensive contact with White Europeans did not start until after the Opium War in the 19th Century when leased territories were set up in various coastal and inland cities.

But before that, Jesuit priests had served as advisers in Ming and Qing courts. Macau was leased to Portugal in the 16th century.

I would say most Chinese were more curious about the perceoved strange costumes of White Europeans rather than their skin colors.

[yangguang]

Thank you for posting.

However, I am already familiar with the fact that China has been in contact with other races for quite a while.

The question that I asked was actually about whether the role that skin tone has played within Chinese/East Asian societies has had an impact on the views of other races, particularly darker-skinned races.

Could the way fairer skin has been viewed in Asia for ages affect the way non-White foreigners are seen today?

[Guest cavebear]

In every country different classes have different ideals for beauty, with significant variation from individual to individual

Nobody in the world is in a position to chalenge my Chineseness. But I am crazy about dark skinned ladies. The darker, the better.

[bhchao]

Although I prefer hot Asian chicks with tanned skin, an example of a beautiful Asian woman with white skin is her:

[wushijiao]

I'll go ahead and predict the most likely ways I'll die:

1) Auto accident

2) skin cancer (I have lived at 7,800 feet in Colorado for most of my life)

3) some other cancer

The umbrellas make sense from a "not dying stupidly" point of view. Without much of an ozone, warding off the UV rays is a good idea.

Anyway, in the US, upper class women used to prefer white skin until the early 1900's. Back then, back in the day, most women were out in the fields, workin' hard, becoming rednecks, red from the sun. Whiteness showed you had weath, and could afford leisure.

But, as time went on, as people started to work in factories and live in cities and work indoors, access to the beach became another standard of measuring one's wealth. Thus, our society that focuses on becoming tan.

I think as China goes from a argicultural society to a industrial/knowledge based society, with people working in factories or offices, people will start to value being tan. All it takes is a handfull of hip Hong Kong stars to start the fad. Of course, the white standard of beauty throughout Chinese history has a long tradtion that may offset any other social trends.

[nipponman]

Hey, sorry to go off topic but, what about black guys? Do chinese girls dig black guys?

[Harvey]

I would think so - paler skin was valued when it meant you spent all your time indoors or under a parasol - perhaps similar to the habit of growing the nail of your little finger.

The habit of gorwing the nail on your little finger?? I don't get it! What is that habit?

[bunni87]

Nipponman: Some do, some don't. I think the media influence with people like Michael Jordan and Will Smith has boosted the image though, in a stereotypical way.

Fair skin is okay if you naturally have it, but if you are tan naturally there should be no hesitation to get lighter. Light does not necessarily equal pretty, regardless of what the old standard says. Some people should consider that more.

[dejavu5]

do chinese women or guys still value white skin?

which cityprovince in china has women with the whitest skin?

[Lu]

Women: yes, guys: no, or at least much less. The whitest Chinese girls can be found in the big cities, but Japanese girls are even whiter.

[tluroc76]

My wife is Chinese but her complexion is as light as Northern Europeans (light and pinkish) and doesn't tan easily. I have fair skin but tan very quickly. My older son is as light as my wife and my younger one can get a nice tan just being outdoor a couple of days.

I don't like girls with ghostly while skin, tanned but not farmer dark is also very attractive IMO. I think 鍾楚紅 has a very health complexion, as does Coco Lee - 李玟.

[Liang]

Thats the most stupid thing Chinese people do! I mean its like 100 years ago in Europe that we believed that was beautiful! Some chinese girls look seriously ill! Its disgusting!

The more tan, the sexier

[gougou]

I mean its like 100 years ago in Europe that we believed that was beautiful!

Ever thought about that they might not be doing it for Europeans?

[Song You Shen]

Quote:

I mean its like 100 years ago in Europe that we believed that was beautiful!

Ever thought about that they might not be doing it for Europeans?

yeah... how about this -> ever thought about that they might have been doing it well before Europe even existed.

Youshen

[meichen]

i disagree with the statement that we want to be like Europeans.

I'm a chinese lady from singapore. I have a very fair and white complexion and i like to keep it that way. It's not that I want to be like the Europeans, it's something that is very chinese - since ancient times, chinese women have desired fair, white skin. I'd rather die than let myself be exposed to the sun and get a tan.

on the other hand, i prefer guys to be tanned ;)

[Lu]

When was it that Europe didn't exist??

[nipponman]

Maybe he is refering to the time when Europeans didn't live in Europe, maybe.

[Song You Shen]

that is correct Nippoman... I was talking about how this cutlural viewpoint (white skin) probably existed well before the European cutlure even started in Europe.

Youshen