More ‘Brutal Frankness’

Excuse me if I laugh a little at the naivete and male egotism of your correspondent’s explanation of why older women can’t hope to marry a man of the same age since the women have deteriorated, primarily in looks, and have family interests (“Older Men and Younger Women: The Brutal Facts” by Howard Halpern, March 10).

Just who is this Adonis who is so superior in every way to women of his own generation? I know it is said that women age faster than men, but it is never pointed out that the standard of good looks for women is far stricter than for men.

It is of course natural for a young woman to choose a man somewhat older than herself first time around, since men grow up more slowly, if ever. But when it comes to the marriage of youth and old age in the choice of an old man by a young woman, the choice, let’s face it, is money .

Older women, for the sake of continued companionship, should marry men younger than themselves. Nature, as well as producing more men than women in the first place, has made them more fragile so that they tend to die first.

MARGARET CRALLE

Arcadia