Atlantica - 01.06.2002, Side 69

A T L A N T I C A 67
On a special night in May, Manúela Ósk Hardardóttir was chosen as the most beautiful woman
in Iceland by a panel of judges and by a number of Web-surfing beauty enthusiasts.
Though there is no denying that with her beautiful round face, puppy-dog eyes and toned body,
she fully deserves a claim to the title, one cannot help but to ask: Is it ever really possible to mea-
sure beauty?
Of course, beauty pageants have never been very scientific in their methods, and perhaps they
are not trying to measure beauty at all. What they are doing could, perhaps, more accurately be
described as comparing.
For in the end, beauty isn't about the length of necks or the size of breasts, and certainly not
about whether you like someone, but whether you like to look at them. And on that particular
night, that particular panel of judges liked to look at Manúela the most, with the Web surfers
adding their approval as well. As a result, the rest of us will get to look at Manúela for a whole
year and wait for the judges to find someone else who is as easy on the eyes next year. OTh
Icelandic Beauty
Can beauty be measured?
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