If you have the guts to be yourself, other people'll pay your price.
John UpdikeRead
A woman’s beauty lies, not in any exaggeration of the specialized zones, nor in any general harmony that could be worked out by means of the sectio aurea or a similar aesthetic superstition; but in the arabesque of the spine. The curve by which the back modulates into the buttocks. It is here that grace sits and rides a woman’s body.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True beauty in women is found in the natural elegance of their form, particularly the curve of the spine.
John Updike emphasizes that a woman's beauty is not defined by superficial exaggerations or strict aesthetic rules but rather in the graceful contours and natural lines of her body, particularly the curve of the spine. This perspective invites a deeper appreciation for the intrinsic qualities of beauty, highlighting the uniqueness of individual forms over societal standards.
Themes
BeautyGraceWomanBodyAesthetics
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion on art and representation, this quote can highlight diverse perceptions of beauty.
More from John Updike
All quotes →Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that's the stuff life is made of. _x000D_ _x000D_ Suspect each moment, for it is a thief, tiptoeing away with more than it brings.
John UpdikeRead
Museums and bookstores should feel, I think, like vacant lots - places where the demands on us are our own demands, where the spirit can find exercise in unsupervised play.
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But it is just two lovers, holding hands and in a hurry to reach their car, their locked hands a starfish leaping through the dark.
John UpdikeRead
The reader knows the writer better than he knows himself; but the writer's physical presence is light from a star that has moved on.
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To guarantee the individual maximum freedom within a social frame of minimal laws ensures - if not happiness - its hopeful pursuit.
John UpdikeRead
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