Letter: Beauty secrets

Monday 17 August 1998 23:02 BST

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Sir: Evolutionary determinism has scarcely more explanatory power than Marxist relativism. But historical research does suggest the near- universal appeal of youthfulness, inextricably associated with slimness - for Catherine the Great, as well as Edward VII. The figure is important, but so too is that supreme gift from the genes: an alluring face.

ARTHUR MARWICK

Verona, Italy

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