Koyuki Matsumoto | Girls get misty-eyed over bespectacled blokes

In bygone days, Japanese women may have seen bespectacled blokes as a bit of a turn off, but now, according to Spa! (11/8), gals are making spectacles of themselves going gaga over guys in goggles.
Nearly all of the hottest male celebrities in Japan at the moment Razor Ramon HG, Masaharu Fukuyama, Sho Aikawa -- wear glasses of some sort.
Psychologist Yasufumi Nagoshi, himself bespectacled, agrees that growing numbers of women only have four-eyes for guys in eyeglasses.
"The relationship between a face and spectacles is the same as that between a work of art and its frame," the pshrink tells Spa! "Women tend to rely on their feelings a lot more than men do, which means they often try to deduce a person's character in a number of ways, such as considering the words they use and their facial expressions. They really pay a lot of attention to the eyes, which reflect an enormous amount of emotion. As spectacles are part of a set with the eyes, it's almost like a guy's eyes are a reflection of his personality. The excited look in the eyes of an aroused guy is basically the same thing as an unhidden genital. Spectacles play a large role in enhancing that."
Another reason for why eyeglass-wearing guys now seem to have the right kind of specs in women's eyes is apparently a matter of timing.
"Nowadays, what women are looking for in men is intellect. And that's why men wearing glasses are suddenly so hot. Women now have economic strength and can live independently. But, that also brings stresses," Nagoshi tells Spa! "But women don't want their men to provide macho brawn, or even financial muscle. They want somebody who is going to listen to them, or help them with their problems. They want intellect and kindness. You can see this trend underlying the enormous popularity of (bespectacled South Korean actor) Bae Young-Joon. And by 'intellect' I mean kindness and an ability to listen and recognize subtle signs. Spectacles are an embodiment of the idea that 'delicacy equals intellect.'"
Nagoshi continues, arguing that intellect can also easily be extended to include eroticism.
"Take, for instance, the case of a young couple visiting an art gallery. The bespectacled guy could stand and stare at an oil painting the woman has skirted by. This could influence the woman to believe that the guy she's with is an intellectual type not afraid to express his emotions. She could become aroused at the thought that the guy has something that she doesn't have, which is why he's staring at the painting for so long. This arousal is a form of eroticism," Nagoshi tells Spa! "Mind you, the guy may be looking at the painting thinking along the lines of 'I wonder how that stain got there.' But, that's not important. It's the glasses that make him look like an intellectual, which is exactly what the woman wants him to look like." (By Ryann Connell)
November 2, 2005