How would you describe the word "beautiful"?
I had been pondering to the actual concept of "beauty" for a long time now. How would you describe a beautiful woman,are there any scientifically-defined requirements to be counted as beautiful? Or is beauty all about what the other person sees,of his perception?
Across the cultures,the concept of "beautiful women" vary.
For example,In America,women who are slim are considered more desirable and beautiful, while, in Mauritania being skinny is definitely not a sign of beauty. Here a beautiful woman is a woman with curves…big curves. The female members of the Kayan tribe (situated on the border between Burma and Thailand) have another idea of beauty. Also known as “long necks”, they measure a woman’s beauty according to the brass rings wore around the neck. As they grow older they increase the number of rings which gives them an elongated neck appearance. In some other areas,a women with a broad jaw line,or sullen lips is considered beautiful.
An ostensible idea out of what has been described above is: the concept of beauty varies across different continents,and "beautiful" is thus something dictated by cultures.
True? I don't agree with this conception. We all have heard the famous proverb: "Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder". Now consider this: In Middle East,the idea of a 'beautiful woman" is not related to what one sees,but what one imagines about. One believes the women behind the black cover(which runs from their head to toe) to be beautiful by their fragrance,or by their eyes. Which brings us to the conclusion,that beauty is not in what one sees,it lies in what image their brain contemplate,in how beautiful THEIR mind and heart is.
If we look at the above maxim through an angle of practicality,we see its loopholes . We have many instances where "beauty" is measured by how a person appears. How many girls would agree to marry a guy not-good-looking enough (Iv banned the word "ugly" from my dictionary,there is nothing "ugly",I believe! It may be "less-good-looking",but not ugly! ),or someone who is half her height? (leave alone the idea if the guy being affluent) If at all beauty is just about "eyes of the beholder",then why do we still cant stop gazing at the beauty of Megan Fox? Why do women still continue to feel jealous from that lady with pout-lips,slender neck,sharp nose,big eyes? Seems like beauty is ACTUALLY all about the physical appearance,isnt it?
The above two explanations of "beauty" are a paradox in themselves. We have proved,that beauty is neither gimmicky,nor is it solely based on the "beauty in the eyes of the beholder",what can possibly be "beauty" then?
Wikipedia describes the word "beauty" as "a characteristic of a person, animal, place, object, or idea that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure or satisfaction". Fair enough,anything capable to bring the euphoria back,something which makes us feel happy is beautiful. Beauty lies in the children playing the park,or the rainbow in the sky. To a bird in the cage,beauty is "freedom to fly"; to that rag-picker lad on the road,beauty is in a sumptuous meal,or clean clothes ;to a child who has been alone since childhood,beauty is the image of his mother. This succumbs us to the conclusion, beauty is in EVERYTHING : it holds no specific definition. We are surrounded by different things beautiful in their own ways. And thus,it had been rightly said:
I had been pondering to the actual concept of "beauty" for a long time now. How would you describe a beautiful woman,are there any scientifically-defined requirements to be counted as beautiful? Or is beauty all about what the other person sees,of his perception?
Across the cultures,the concept of "beautiful women" vary.For example,In America,women who are slim are considered more desirable and beautiful, while, in Mauritania being skinny is definitely not a sign of beauty. Here a beautiful woman is a woman with curves…big curves. The female members of the Kayan tribe (situated on the border between Burma and Thailand) have another idea of beauty. Also known as “long necks”, they measure a woman’s beauty according to the brass rings wore around the neck. As they grow older they increase the number of rings which gives them an elongated neck appearance. In some other areas,a women with a broad jaw line,or sullen lips is considered beautiful.
True? I don't agree with this conception. We all have heard the famous proverb: "Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder". Now consider this: In Middle East,the idea of a 'beautiful woman" is not related to what one sees,but what one imagines about. One believes the women behind the black cover(which runs from their head to toe) to be beautiful by their fragrance,or by their eyes. Which brings us to the conclusion,that beauty is not in what one sees,it lies in what image their brain contemplate,in how beautiful THEIR mind and heart is.
If we look at the above maxim through an angle of practicality,we see its loopholes . We have many instances where "beauty" is measured by how a person appears. How many girls would agree to marry a guy not-good-looking enough (Iv banned the word "ugly" from my dictionary,there is nothing "ugly",I believe! It may be "less-good-looking",but not ugly! ),or someone who is half her height? (leave alone the idea if the guy being affluent) If at all beauty is just about "eyes of the beholder",then why do we still cant stop gazing at the beauty of Megan Fox? Why do women still continue to feel jealous from that lady with pout-lips,slender neck,sharp nose,big eyes? Seems like beauty is ACTUALLY all about the physical appearance,isnt it?
The above two explanations of "beauty" are a paradox in themselves. We have proved,that beauty is neither gimmicky,nor is it solely based on the "beauty in the eyes of the beholder",what can possibly be "beauty" then?
Wikipedia describes the word "beauty" as "a characteristic of a person, animal, place, object, or idea that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure or satisfaction". Fair enough,anything capable to bring the euphoria back,something which makes us feel happy is beautiful. Beauty lies in the children playing the park,or the rainbow in the sky. To a bird in the cage,beauty is "freedom to fly"; to that rag-picker lad on the road,beauty is in a sumptuous meal,or clean clothes ;to a child who has been alone since childhood,beauty is the image of his mother. This succumbs us to the conclusion, beauty is in EVERYTHING : it holds no specific definition. We are surrounded by different things beautiful in their own ways. And thus,it had been rightly said:
“Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it." - Confuscius
No comments:
Post a Comment