RANT: Disproportionate Women (may be offensive)

[BOZ]

things always get interesting when someone posts a link in NTL.

anyway, i have to agree, Frazetta-style women are pretty easy on the eyes. i guess after using them for so long, TSR mostly stopped, and WotC seems to have gone even further away from the chainmail bikini crowd (unless i'm missing them, and if so where can i find them?)

 

[Audhild&Krin]

Wow- a lot of assumptions about me

I must say I flattered at the psycho analysis of myself several posters have attempted from one post.
-I am a she, not a he. I would think that kind of obvious since it is usually women who complain about overly large breasts in fantasy art.
-I do not have a problem with magic in fantasy. Magic follows rules. A muscular, active woman with DD breasts does not follow the rules of metabolism (unless she consumes a large amount of calories each day). The fact is most of the breast is fatty tissue and any woman who had dieted can tell you, the first place you loose fatty tissue is in the breast.
-I am not obsessed with non-realistic elements in fantasy. I am annoyed with the lack of common sense in fantasy art. Yes, there are overly muscular men pictured in fantasy art as well. That also annoys me. However the very large breasted female is far more common. Also the parts of interest on a man are not focused on or oversized as often as the parts of interest on a woman (I hope that makes sense, I am tired).
-I have seen Dog the Bounty Hunter (the pic posted) and this actually proves one of my points. His wife has very large breasts, but she also has extra fatty tissue on other body parts.
-My biggest problem (no pun intended) is not about large breast, it’s about breasts that are impossible without surgery, I thought I was clear about that, but guess not. As a woman I do not find gargantuan breasts attractive, nor do any of the men I have asked (and yes they were honest, they had no reason to lie).

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

Also the parts of interest on a man are not focused on or oversized as often as the parts of interest on a woman (I hope that makes sense, I am tired).

I'm sorry, but for the sake of my self-esteem, I need to believe that that is not the case.

 

[Crothian]

not a valid comparison, but an expected one...

The complaint is the art is unrealistic. Magic is also unrealistic. THe comparison is sound.

 

[BOZ]

-I am a she, not a he. I would think that kind of obvious

maybe not so much. the avatar is not entirely feminine, although the name... perhaps if one thinks "Audhild", similar to "Brunnhild"...

 

[SWAT]

After reading this entire thread from the beginning, I must say I'm quite surprised by the general response to the original post. I would have expected something more balanced. And I really don't think the comparison between women's chests and magic has any legs to stand on.

 

[Crothian]

And I really don't think the comparison between women's chests and magic has any legs to stand on.

Really, so complaining about something not being reaslistic is not that same as complainging about something else not being realistic? :\

 

[BOZ]

this whole argument is not being realistic.

 

[Dark Jezter]

-I am a she, not a he. I would think that kind of obvious since it is usually women who complain about overly large breasts in fantasy art.

Don't be so certain. I've seen guys before who take personal offense at shapley women in fantasy art.

 

[SWAT]

Really, so complaining about something not being reaslistic is not that same as complainging about something else not being realistic? :\

Well of course, but it seems to me the context here shouldn't be ignored. The original post was in reference to the portrayal of women in fantasy art. Basically, the women from the fantasy worlds in the art are portrayed unrealistically compared to how they should be in the fantasy worlds, not in the real world. Nonetheless a valid complaint because usually, as in D&D, humans in the fantasy world are physiologically the same as humans in the real world.

Now, what exactly makes something "fantasy"? Very often one of the answers is "magic". It's what makes the world different from reality. I'm not exactly sure how to express this, but I figure you'll understand. Magic is at the core of the whole enchilada. Of course it's unrealistic compared to reality, but it isn't unrealistic when compared to your average fantasy world, because it's one of the things that make it a fantasy world in the first place.

So, unless suddenly the usual definition of fantasy becomes "magic, fantastic creatures, and unrealisitc human beings," then I don't see how the "magic is unrealistic" card can be played in this discussion. And I would argue that the images of the humans in the PHB, while being very little evidence, are a good starting point to show that unrealistic humans beings are not yet part of the average fantasy setting.

A summary, because I can get pretty wordy. Human beings in fantasy are, on average, supposed to be like they are in reality, so even if they are not portrayed as such within the context of the fantasy world, a valid complaint can be made. But magic is not supposed to be like any real thing. It exists solely in the fantasy world, and thus cannot be judged as unrealistic within the context of that fantasy world. Such a complaint would thus not be valid.