[CHAPTER V]
THE SECONDARY SEXUAL CHARACTERISTICS
In the preceding two chapters there were described the primary sexual characteristics of man and woman which are already found in early foetal life. The secondary sexual characteristics, by which we are able to distinguish the male from the female, quite irrespective of the essential organs of reproduction and by which the sexes are made more attractive to each other, begin to develop at the time of puberty.
At this period of life certain changes take place in the body of the child, and the differences between the sexes become more pronounced. The stamp of sex is no longer confined to the pelvis, but is impressed on every part of the body. In the first years of existence the child is almost asexual, in physical as well as in mental relation. The child is yet neutral; it is only a spinal being or a digestive tube. All its actions are directed upon one aim, the preservation of the individual. Hence there is no great physical difference in children of the different sexes. The differences begin to show with the beginning of puberty and are definite at the close of this period. In the animal kingdom, especially among birds and mammals, nature has distinguished the male with the greater beauty. Man’s galantry designates women as the beautiful sex.
The man’s figure is characterized by a relative robustness, the forms are sinewy, the contours less rounded. The bony prominences are more conspicuous and the muscles more clearly defined. The skeleton is relatively larger, the stature is higher and the form is erect. The head is much larger, and the growth of the hair on it less pronounced. The male skull is more tilted back, the occipital protuberance larger. The glabella or the projection over the nose is more pronounced. The superciliary ridges more prominent. The eyes, therefore, appear much smaller. The lower jaw is markedly larger, the lips are thicker
and the mouth is larger. Hence the face appears less delicately cut. The chin and upper lip are covered with hair. Man’s neck is less cylindrical than woman’s and presents four slightly flattened surfaces. The laryngeal projection is highly pronounced.
CUT XXVI.
Showing proportions of man and woman.
Man’s shoulders are not sloping but square, showing traces of sinews and muscles. The thorax is longer. The beautifully rounded form of the female bosom is missing. The breasts appear atrophic, the mammillae insignificant. The trunk is relatively shorter.
The pelvis is higher and smaller. The circumference of the hips is relatively smaller. The angle formed by the superior plane of the pelvis with the horizon, when standing, is relatively smaller. Hence the buttocks are less protuberant.