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The same is true in other markets. Women have traditionally traded looks for economic support in marriage. A Chinese study confirms that the husbands of unappealing women earn about 10% less than those of their dishier counterparts. Attractive people also have an easier time getting a loan than plain folks, even as they are less likely to pay it back. They receive milder prison sentences and higher damages in simulated legal proceedings. In America more people say they have felt discriminated against for their appearance than because of their age, race or ethnicity. Pretty people, it seems, have all the luck. These books attempt to explain why that is, and what, if anything, should be done about it.
Daniel Hamermesh, an economist at the University of Texas, has long written about “pulchronomics”. In “Beauty Pays” he reckons that, over a lifetime and assuming today’s mean wages, a handsome worker in America might on average make $230,000 more than a very plain one. There is evidence that attractive workers bring in more business, so it often makes sense for firms to hire them. Whether rewarding them accordingly—and paying their less attractive peers more stingily—is good for society is another matter.
In examining the case for legal protection for the ugly, Mr Hamermesh relies to a degree on the work of Deborah Rhode, a law professor at Stanford University and author of “The Beauty Bias”. Ms Rhode clearly struggles to see why any woman would willingly embrace fashion (particularly high heels). She is outraged that virtually all females consider their looks as key to their self-image. She cites a survey in which over half of young women said they would prefer to be hit by a truck than be fat. Her indignation is mostly moral. Billions of dollars are now spent on cosmetic surgery—up to 90% of it by women—at a time when almost a fifth of Americans lack basic health care. The more women focus on improving their looks, Ms Rhode argues, the less they think about others.

A. 어휘
trade 장사하다, 돈을 받고 팔다. looks 外貌(외모).
unappealing 매력이 없는. dish 예쁜, 매력적인. loan 貸付(대부).
sentences 宣告(선고). damages 賠償金(배상금), 손해액.
simulated 模擬(모의). simulated legal proceedings 모의법률소송(모의재판).
discriminated 차별당하다. for their appearance 외모 때문에.
ethnicity 민족성. pulchronomics 미모경제학. cf. pulchritude 육체의 아름다움.
mean wages 평균임금. makes sense 道理(도리)에 맞다, 이해가 되다.
firms 회사. accordingly 그것에 따라서, 相應(상응)하여.
peers 동료. stingily 인색하게. protection 보호. the ugly 못생긴 사람들.
to a degree 어느 정도까지. Bias 편견, 斜線(사선).
willingly 기꺼이, 자진해서. embrace 받아들이다, 채택하다, 얼싸안다.
outraged 격노하다. cite 인용하다. indignation 분노, 義憤(의분).
cosmetic surgery 成形手術(성형수술).