Step 1: Read the text, Perfectly Imperfect

Question

Step 2: Identify the author’s position on the perfect human body.
What does the author Donna Bozzone think about the topic of the ‘perfect’ human body?
Find two pieces of evidence from the text that prove how she feels about this topic.
"The artist Leonardo da
Vinci, perhaps best
is as long as what you would expect to see in a man who is 6 feet 8 inches
known for painting the tall. His legs are the length typical of
Mona Lisa, produced
a drawing called the
Vitruvian Man. In it, da Vinci depicted his idea of the perfectly sized and proportioned male body. But is this really what a perfect body looks like? And if it's perfect, does that make every other type of body flawed? Or maybe those are the wrong questions and the idea of a "perfect" body is actually what's flawed.
a man who is 5 feet 10 inches. Phelps has long arms too. Like the Vitruvian Man, most people have a wingspan roughly the same as their height.
Phelps' wingspan is 6 feet 7 inches, three inches longer than his height.
His ankles are (reportedly) double jointed, and thus extremely flexible. And his feet are big-he wears size 14 shoes. So Phelps' legs act like flippers when he swims.
No one could argue that Phelps has a perfect body in da Vinci's sense. But is it correct to say it is imperfect? What does "perfection" mean when we are talking about human biology? Does it even exist?" "the animal kingdom. Imagine a population of brown rabbits and white rabbits in a snowy field. Under these conditions, predators are less likely to see and catch the white rabbits. In a summertime field-all brown soil and green and golden plants-white rabbits are more visible and easier to catch. Neither white nor brown fur is perfect for
rabbit survival. Rabbits need different"
An Imperfect Man Consider Michael Phelps. The winningest swimmer of all time, Phelps earned 28 Olympic medals. His body does not look like the Vitruvian Man. In fact, Phelps' body is quite unusual. The best swimmers tend to have long torsos and short legs. Phelps is 6 feet 4 inches, but his torso
What Is Physical Perfection?
Maybe perfection has more to do with how a body works than how it looks. How we function actually depends upon how well we fit into our environment.
Here's an example from bodies for different seasons. And
in fact, in some types of rabbits, fur
color changes with the seasons. Like
rabbits, all organisms, including
people, adapt to their environments.
The process of evolution selects for
the survival of organisms that thrive
in their specific environments. But
evolution isn’t engineering. Often,
imperfections that don’t affect
survival too badly get passed on
through the generations.

Answer 1

In "Perfectly Imperfect," author Donna Bozzone presents a critical perspective on the concept of the 'perfect' human body. She suggests that the idea of perfection in human biology is flawed and that different body types can be suited to various environments and functions. Instead of adhering to a singular idea of what a perfect body looks like, Bozzone emphasizes function and adaptability over aesthetic ideals.

Two pieces of evidence from the text that support this perspective are:

1. Questioning Perfection: Bozzone writes, "But is this really what a perfect body looks like? And if it's perfect, does that make every other type of body flawed? Or maybe those are the wrong questions and the idea of a 'perfect' body is actually what’s flawed." This statement illustrates her belief that the notion of a perfect body is not only misleading but potentially harmful, implying that there is no one standard that defines a human body's worth.

2. Function Over Appearance: She states, "Maybe perfection has more to do with how a body works than how it looks." This assertion highlights her argument that bodies should be evaluated based on their functionality and adaptability to their environments, rather than superficial standards of beauty or proportion.

Through these points, Bozzone advocates for a broader understanding of body diversity and challenges the traditional notions of physical perfection.