
Descending Night: The cruel fate of Audrey Munson (2015) - evilsimon
https://believermag.com/descending-night/
======
ecpottinger
I don't find her that good looking.

Was it the lack of others doing the same job as her, or has cultural standards
of beauty changed that much?

Some of her flapper and poise pictures look good, but not super special.

Maybe it is just me.

~~~
neonate
Cultural standards of beauty have changed that much. If you want an extreme
example, from not long before (late 19th instead of early 20th century), see
[https://themindcircle.com/tadj-es-saltaneh-persian-
princess/](https://themindcircle.com/tadj-es-saltaneh-persian-princess/).

~~~
msla
[https://blog.usejournal.com/princess-qajar-and-the-
problem-w...](https://blog.usejournal.com/princess-qajar-and-the-problem-with-
junk-history-memes-44e15260af67)

> Junk history is embodied perfectly in a recent viral meme that portrays a
> nineteenth-century Persian princess with facial hair alongside the claim
> that 13 men killed themselves over their unrequited love for her. While it
> fails miserably at historical accuracy, the meme succeeds at demonstrating
> how easily viral clickbait obscures and overshadows rich and meaningful
> stories from the past.

[snip]

> Unfortunately, not only does the “Princess Qajar” meme boil down this
> deeply-nuanced element of cultural history into junk history clickbait, it
> also makes it worse by adding the sensational claim that thirteen men killed
> themselves over their unrequited love for her. Naturally, there is no source
> given to support this claim, which appears to be pulled from thin air. Were
> it true, it would seem like worthy material to include in even the shortest
> legitimate biographical information about ‘Esmat, but it doesn’t appear
> anywhere.

You raise a good point about shifting standards of beauty. You simply picked a
poor example, one made more out of clickbait and meme culture than actual
history.

~~~
neonate
Ah whoops. Thanks "themindcircle.com".

