View From Venus: What Women Think Of Ogling

By Sarah Stefanson
[View From Venus]
What are the four types of ogling men tend to employ?  Sarah Stefanson has some insight into the thoughts of women when it comes to checking people out.
It’s natural to want to look at aesthetically pleasing things.  It’s why we go to art museums, scale great heights to take in astounding natural views and check out hot guys when they walk by on the street.  Many of us also go to great lengths to be the very kind of beautiful things that other people want to gaze at as well.

Women have a variety of feelings about the concept of being visually appreciated by the opposite sex and about doing the appreciating themselves.  This week in View From Venus, we’re going to go over some of those feelings, while in Message From Mars, Matthew will be offering an explanation of why men behave the way they do.

Don’t Be A Creep

Why do women often make all kinds of fuss about men checking out a particularly attractive member of the opposite sex in pubic?  Well, first of all, there’s a difference between an appreciative glance and a lecherous stare.  A man’s ogling tends to lean towards the lewd and distasteful.  From the catcalls of construction workers to the crude remarks in school hallways, men seem to have difficulty mastering the art of subtle appraisal and respectful admiration.  If you never plan on having a date again, by all means please keep up the whistles and playground-level come-ons.  If, however, you expect a woman to actually return your affections, try a more grown-up approach.

Women Do It Too

Men have a reputation for being irrepressible oglers.  With so much relationship advice column space going to advising women on how to keep their partners’ eyes from wandering and chastising men for their inconsiderate eyeballing, it’s easy to forget that women do check out men as well.  We’re just way better at it.  If you think your girlfriend doesn’t check out other guys, even when you’re sitting right beside her, you’re wrong.  Women tend to be subtler than men in most areas, but especially in the art of ogling.  At any given moment, you could ask a woman in a public place exactly where the attractive men in the crowd are situated around her and she could point them out in a heartbeat.  The reason guys don’t notice our appraisals most of the time is that they are quick, understated and sly.  What men need minutes to do, we can do in seconds.  As a result, we can take in the eye candy without bruising our boyfriends’ sensitive egos in the process.  If men developed this skill, they would hear, “You are totally starting at that girl!” much less often from their disgusted girlfriends.
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