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9/9/2019.
What Is Beauty?
There is no concrete definition, and objective standards of beauty as beauty has varied over time depending on changing cultures and perceptions of the world. Beauty can be defined as the images and moments that inspire and represent the most instinct and remarkable attractiveness of our souls (Victor, 189). It is the aggregate of qualities in a thing or even a person that gives pleasure to the senses and exalts the spirit and mind. It is not confined to the qualities of external but also to the internal, and therefore it is more than what is on the surface or what can be seen. However, beauty is often distorted, shadowed, and misunderstood due to a large number of conflicting pressures. Most of the definitions of beauty have relied on the physical character, especially on what can be seen. According to Confucius, a philosopher, and a teacher, “everything has beauty but not everyone sees it” (Grossbart, and Elizabeth, 22).
Does beauty lie in the eyes of the beholder, or what is beautiful should appear as beautiful to everyone? The indisputable truth is that beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder; hence, it depends on individuals and circumstances. Something or somebody can be seen as beautiful by one person as not as such beautiful by another. This is because the definition of beauty is widely influenced by one’s culture, age, perceptions, and media. For example, supermodels are considered beautiful by almost everyone because of the media influence and their fit in the perceptions and definition of beauty by most people. However, they do not appear to be beautiful to everyone because their beauty is, in most cases defined by their pleasing appearance, and beauty to other people goes beyond the external qualities of individuals. This indicates the varying subjectivity of what beauty is and what it constitutes. The varying definitions of beauty is majorly driven by two different schools of thought; one that believes that human definition and judgment of issues is determined by cultural conditioning, and second school of thought that argues that individuals’ aesthetic appreciation of issues and things is instinctive, and it is based on genetic programming (Wagner, 126)
Over the past centuries, there has been a debate on the influence of the beauty myth on the artwork. According to the beauty myth, the highest and core purpose if art is to be visually beautiful. The implication of this myth is that creative work should first meet the standards of beauty for it attract attention, communicate the intended message, and look good. However, this is essentially not true as an art does not need to be beautiful for it to be considered good. While most of the highly recognized and accepted arts are beautiful in their ways, the beauty of art is not the standard for categorization of arts as good or and bad, as the basis of art is not to be pretty. Art can be good when it is downright ugly, and best arts are not beautiful. Although there is no one unique definition of art, it can be considered as a visual expression of our thoughts, intuitions, desires, emotions or the use visuals to pass a message (Victor, 190). This indicates that it is a gross misuse of art to say that it has to be pretty for it to be considered as good, as its basic purpose is to communicate. Therefore, art should be considered good or bad, depending on how well it communicates the intended message and not its physical appearance.
Beuty is not just a physical thing. It is a subjective concept that entails the physical, as well as the radiance of spirit and character. For example, being respectful, kind, honest and of the good heart may be considered as beautiful, and most cases ‘ the inner beauty.’ People infer this as ‘inner beauty’ as it lies within the societal virtues and value, although they can not be able to see the honesty or kindness in a person. This indicates that beauty is not just a physical thing but a broad concept that encompasses both what can be seen and what cant be seen.The standard of beauty is basically socially constructed. Therefore the society and culture set the standards of beauty; hence, different people respond to what is beautiful and what is not depending on their culture.
Victor S., “Is a beauty in the eye of the beholder?.” Ethology and Sociobiology 14.3 (2013): 183-199.
Grossbart and Elizabeth R. Didie. “Beauty and society.” Seminars in Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery. Vol. 22. No. 2. 2014.
Wagner, Janet. “Beauty in art and fashion.” Consumer value: A framework for analysis and research (2009): 126.
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