You are leaving out one important demographic that is not included in your desirable list: women who by age or choice do not have reproductive abilities. I see that the entire reason this article was written is to encourage women to expose themselves for the male gaze. You have purposely not included physically undesirable women or women who do not wish to be gazed upon by males in your list. This is the male version of reality.
I agree with you on many points as you've raised a number of generalities. However you have completely excluded the women who are actively changing the world and who do not use their sex appeal to do so: Vandana Shiva is one. The problem with the male perspective is the male gaze which can never seem to get enough. It finds craftier and craftier ways to twist logic in the hopes of ensnaring more women and convincing them that the only power they have to rely upon in sexual in nature.
You assume that all women are interested in subjecting themselves to men. This is extremely short-sighted and illustrates your myopic view of women.
Your sexually selfish desire is thinly veiled.
Did you not read the very first paragraph of my post (the disclaimer)? It contradicts most of what you just said above. I most definitely did not "assume that all women are interested in subjecting themselves to men". Having said that, I fail to see how embracing one's sexuality constitutes "subjecting" oneself to men. The whole point of my post was to contradict that common worldview.
And lastly, regarding your last sentence, there's no need to resort to ad hominem. I tried to articulate as best I could the findings of the science of evolutionary biology, and to reason therefrom. I think I made a rational argument. I'm interested in any rational criticisms or refutations of those arguments that you might offer, but simply saying that evolutionary biology constitutes a "sexual fetish" isn't helpful.
Also, sex appeal has nothing to do with "reproductive capabilities". Evolution hard wired us to be attracted to certain indicators of reproductive capability regardless of whether or not it actually exists in a given individual. As evolutionary psychologists have shown, sexual attractiveness is remarkably consistent in every culture and throughout all times.
For instance, most men regardless of time or culture, find youth, long hair, small waists, large breasts, lighter hair and lighter eyes to be, on average, more sexually compelling than the opposite because these are, in fact, evolutionary ”markers" or "cues" for fertility. Women likewise find certain well-know physical attributes to be sexy in men, but they also look beyond the physical when measuring a man’s sex appeal—to things like wealth, influence, position, stature, etc.
I never intended to suggest that sex appeal is the only way women can influence the world, just the easiest and most obvious, and one that has been actively denied them by men. Of course there are women who make a tremendous impact on the world regardless of their sexual attractiveness. The more of them the better. But its damn near criminal that men have conned women for centuries into abandoning their greatest source of evolutionary influence—their sex appeal and their ability to choose their mates.
In any event, I think your view of sexuality is too narrow. Men (and women) find all different types of things (ages, body types, etc.) sexy as evidenced by Internet Rule 34: “If it exists, there is porn of it.”
The feminine desire for attention and to bee seen is not really accepted in our culture. I think a woman have the right to do whatever she pleases with her body. If she chose to use her beauty to gain power she should be free to do so. If she wish to transcend her gender that should also be accepted. Female power is feared by men for good reason because it threatens the masculine need for dominance and control. The feminine powers are often unpredictable, as no one really knows what the woman wants, not even herself. There is no right or wrong way to be feminine, and femininity is so much more than innocence and beauty. If the world is truly ready to embrace the feminine, as we all hunger for love and vast possibility at this point in time, we must be willing to embrace the feminine force in its entirety, not just the cute and sexy side of it. It is dangerous to limit feminine power to sexuality, every young woman today is too aware of the fact that her most valuable asset is her body. And that her body does not belong only to herself. The female body is inviting, open and willing to embrace. I do not think that female sexuality is limited to picking the right genes for your offspring. With the feminine power sex is not only reproductive, but a means to deeper connection and intimate relationships.
Beautifully said, and I mostly agree. The only point I would disagree with is that "every young woman today is too aware of the fact that her most valuable asset is her body". I don't find this to be the case at all. If they truly do realize it, they are shamed out of exploiting it, and when they do release it, they generally do so in ways controlled by men.
Nobody consciously approaches sex in the manner indicated by evolutionary psychologists--that is, nobody choose their partner by deciding whether or not he/she has "good genes." But, as shown by evolutionary psychologists, the things we almost invariably find sexy are indeed indicators or markers for good genes. We are instinctually attracted to good genes, not consciously.
In the beginning of our evolutionary history sex was purely a means to produce healthy offspring. Then health and beauty would be the most attractive assets for sure. But the woman soon discovered that she could trade sex for food and protection, and the man discovered that he could turn to her for emotional support and care. And so the female was soon celebrated for her healing powers and protection instinct. The sexual relationships would early on have transcended the purely reproductive purposes and thus began to involve psychological comfort, trust and community. Great things can happen when a woman use her powers for good.