The perception of the "ideal beauty" is an arbitrary and abstract concept that is constantly being modified as a result of the times. People are influenced by the images they see in the media to determine what the ideal beauty is. The media is manipulative and deceptive in nature, and it continues to carry harmful suggestions about ideal beauty despite the concrete evidence of damaging effects to people of all ages. Fortunately, it seems there may be shifts in the media that are beginning to portray men and women more realistically.
The concept of beauty can be hard to define, as it is an ever-evolving notion. What people perceive as beauty has varied through time, across cultures (Fallon 1990) and can also vary based on individuals. To a culture, beauty can be its customs and traditions, and to an individual it can include physical appearance (outer beauty) or personality (inner beauty). However the word beauty can also defer according to gender, Ambrose Bierce (1958) once wrote, “To men, a man is but a mind. Who cares what face he carries or what he wears? But a woman’s body is the woman.” Despite the societal changes achieved since Bierce’s time, this statement still holds true. Attractiveness is a prerequisite for femininity but not for masculinity (Freedman, 1986).
How far have we really come from tenth-century China? We may have changed our mode of torture but based on the evidence women will still go through extreme practices to make themselves attractive to men. Women today will always go above and beyond to look appealing to men. Whether it is minor adjustments such as hair color and makeup to extreme adjustments like plastic surgery and Botox women are continuing to go great lengths to look good for the opposite sex.
So beauty is something that is pleasing to the senses. Perhaps music that is pleasing to the ears, or art that pleases the eyes. But again, there is a problem. If we follow this definition, beauty is subjective. What is beautiful and what is not beautiful will change according to the person being asked. What is pleasing to one’s senses may be different to another’s.
First, one must ponder a couple of questions: who defines beauty in today’s culture and society? Does the mass media industry define beauty? Everywhere one turns in advertisements, commercials, TV shows, movies, magazines, etc. someone is telling us what “beauty” is. The allure of celebrities and the beauty they exude, definitely influences the beauty those in the Western culture strive to be and are attracted too. Television, movies, magazines, advertisements that come from the Western culture have influenced cultures around the world. Due to the high i...
Beauty is what gives us pleasure and makes us happy. Beauty is both internal and external depending on how we are cultured to appreciate it. The contribution of our physical attributes aesthetics attitudes, dispositions, kindness, selflessness, hearts, and love; all are beautiful in the eyes of the beholder, merely for the reason that they delight the mind. Beauty holds a different meaning to different people and comes in many different forms. Some forms of beauty are establish in nature, such as a magnificent sunset, or beautiful flowers in a community garden, while other forms are found in fine art and classical
I cannot remember the last time I met someone who I would characterize as “ugly.” This word stems from a lack of self-esteem, and considering we are ALL made in the image of God, we all have inner and outer beauty (Genesis 1:27). If you don’t believe me, ask your mom, dad, or best friend, and I guarantee they will agree with me. Not only are you beautiful, but also infinitely valuable, as Christ gave up his life for you (Romans 5:8). You are a child of the Most High God, and are of indescribable value (Psalm 82:6). Never let anyone tell you anything
Obviously, it is not a term applied to outward appearance in cases such as this. From this, one must ascertain that "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.” (Keller) So, is beauty a physical characteristic? Is it a state of mind? Each person has their own idea of what beauty is and what it entails. Each individual must measure their values of others and themselves, their ideas of what true beauty is to determine what beauty they wish to be and to bring into their worlds. While a person can be pleasing to look at, it is what they do, how they treat others, how they treat us that determine how we will continue to feel about
Beauty has differed through time, different cultures and perceptions of the world. It’s not easy to define beauty, you could say that there are “a thousand” definitions of beauty. And there are numerous degrees of each. “Beauty depends on the eye of the beholder”. This saying is correct because what one individual considers beautiful is not necessarily what another individual may consider beautiful. Someone “beautiful on the outside” can be “ugly inside”. The media and the society are constantly using the conception of “beauty” to show us what we should strive to be. They assert that we have to appear a certain way to be viewed as beautiful. This is wrong, so what is beauty, really, and what different ways of looking at beauty are there?
3) Symbol of Beauty, An article on symmetry in nature and our relationship with it.
Since the dawn of time, beauty or what it should or should not be has been influenced by civilization. “Beauty” depicted what is or is not acceptable. No matter what one person prefers, people still struggle to reach the ideal image set forth by varying factors. “Beauty” according to Dictionary.com is “the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind, whether arising from sensory manifestations (as shape, color, sound, etc.), a meaningful design or pattern, or something else,” if this is the case why do people not abide by that? () “Beauty” is an intangible obsession that has yet to be explored properly. Is “beauty” really in the eye of the beholder?” Why do women feel the need to be “beautiful?” “Beauty” is a strong factor in women’s lives, but they do not control it; nature, race, and society depict what “true beauty” is, and because of those things a great percentage of women are insecure.
Everyone has their own perception of beauty. The attractive attributes in something or someone is based on an opinion. In other countries and cultures their definition of beauty might be different than others. What my culture considers beautiful can be repulsive to other cultures. I define beauty in a few different ways. I believe a person can be physically attractive or internally attractive or both. There are features on a person’s body such as, white teeth, freckles, moles, or clear skin making that person unique. On the other hand, a person can be considered beautiful because their personality is delightful. Massy’s, “A Grotesques Old Woman” is the perfect example of the proverb “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
It was a normal day of 8th grade in tech ed and then everything went south. I heard the groundbreaking word “ugly”. It was then when I realized I was who they were talking about. In that moment I felt just my heart beating but then my feet taking me out in the hall to think. I knew I could feel tears streaming down my face even though that's not something I wanted to happen. The word ugly is “very unpleasant or un -pleasing to look at” (Dictionary.com). Some other ways that people get called revolving ugly are words like hideous, horrid, and gross(thesaurus.com). It also affects people's self esteem and social appearance. Calling someone ugly is a destructive term and is a powerful word to offend someone's self appearance.
It is our nature as human beings to desire being seen as attractive. Both women and men will go beyond barriers to make themselves more aesthetic. Scholars define beauty as the quality of being attractive physically or having in you the qualities that give pleasure to the mind and the senses of other people. Everyone has their own definition of beauty. Therefore, there is no standard measure to determine or judge if someone or something is or is not beautiful. There can be a great variation in the definition of beauty in America while compared to the definition of beauty in other foreign countries. Despite these differences, most countries share a number of ideas regarding what beauty
My own personal belief of beauty can be associated with items found in nature like flowers and animals or the ocean but also a person with a kind personality. The male I interviewed whom I know very well stated he finds beauty in someone who is unique and different but then at the same time says, “you got to be perfect to be beautiful” (Timpson). The next question is what he finds to be ugly or not beautiful, he stated that ugly would be “trash” or someone of “poor quality”, even after asking for him to expand, the most I could get out of him was the word “trash”. What I learned from this interview is that to be beautiful you must be perfect and if you trashy you are not beautiful. This interview left me wondering about all the kindhearted, kind spirited imperfect people in the world, are they not