"Dio fa gli uomini, e e' s' appaino."
--Salviati
There are two elements of character which a man should possess, develop,
and maintain unstained if he would find favor in feminine eyes: the first
is bravery; the second, indomitableness of resolution. So likewise,
There are two elements of character which a woman should possess,
develop, and maintain unstained if she would find favor in masculine
eyes: the first is sympathy; the second, sweetness of temper.
* * *
A curious and latent hostility divides the sexes. It seems as they could
not approach each other without alarums and excursions. Always the
presence of the one rouses anxiety in the breast of the other; they stand
to arms; they resort to tactics; they maneuver. And,
Men and women approach each other vizored and in armor. But it is often
only to conceal the craven heart that beats beneath the brazen cuirass.
* * *
Men judge of women, not so much by their intrinsic worth, as by the
impression women make upon them. And women know this, since
All women are alive to the fact that the impressing (1) of men is the
important function of life. Accordingly,
Great stress is, and is naturally, laid by women upon dress and the
subtleties of the toilette. For,
In matters of the heart man is led by the heart and not by the head. (2)
And why not? Since
It is generally a sweet-heart, not a hard head, that a man wants. In
short,
Men are oftener vanquished by a look than by logic; by a gracious smile
than by good sense; by manner and even by dress than by mental
development or depth. This is to say,
A man judges a woman by her appearance;