Beauty Is a Reflection of Culture and Perception

How beauty is perceived and what beauty is defined as is a very controversial topic. Beauty is a reflection of one’s culture and perceptions. However, one’s idea of beauty may become contorted. This results in a misperception of what beauty really is. Society makes it out to be a perfect model or celebrity that no one can compare to. In order to understand why beauty is not a universal idea, one must know what beauty is, what each culture perceives as beauty, and the misperception society gives people. One’s idea of beauty should be based on his or her own cultural perceptions, reminding one that society, media, or any other source cannot define a universal idea of the art of beauty.

Humans all want to be noticed and admired by that special someone. They also have the tendency to envy or want to be envied by others. These disliked characteristics are a part of human nature. It is these same characteristics and desires that are a big influence on the idea of beauty. Women are more heavily affected by this desire than men. This desire draws a woman to ‘beautify’ herself in order to please men. Meera Jain did a study and found out that every woman goes through a costly, sometimes painful process in order to beautify themselves. A woman’s main purpose for enduring this is so she can seem sexually attractive. Many seem to forget that beauty is a reflection of our inner spirit. No matter if a woman goes through a process to beautify herself or not, the final result is a beautiful work of art. “The quest for beauty has changed significantly but the purpose remains the same, to show off material wealth, social position, authority, and flaunt sexual appeal” (“The Cultural Implications of Beauty”). This process and purpose varies from cul...

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.... “Augustine asked in De Veritate Religione, whether things are beautiful because they give delight, or whether they give delight because they are beautiful; he chose the second one” (qtd. in Sartwell 247).

Many believe that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes, which is commonly true. In the same way, beauty also has different colors and tastes. John Locke treated color as a source of beauty because certain qualities are in the perceiving mind rather than the outside world. Without perceivers, there would be no colors. Under certain conditions, like day and night, an object can be seen with different colors. Everyone has their own ‘type’ or ‘preference’ when considering a mate. A person’s type or preference is their own taste for beauty. The matter of taste for beauty depends on the person. Some people might even be thought of as tasteless. Taste is considered both