Kari Kukkonen
Ms. Boresen
Expository Writing, Period: 4
Definition Essay
24 March 2011
What is Beauty?
It is ever-changing, and can be seen in a variety of ways. It creates a social hierarchy, and it is how we see the world. Beauty is everything, and nothing, for beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What is beauty, though? Is it a super model? Perhaps it is a new-born baby. Or maybe, it is in the mountains. Is it superficial and vain, or is it realistic, honest, and pure? Beauty is nature, that when it touches us, breathes into us new life and perspective.
While trying to find the perfect definition for beauty, I realized that there are so many possible ones, and we all have our own personal ones, as well. According to Dictionary.com, beauty is defined as the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense or deep satisfaction to the mind, whether arising from sensory manifestations, a meaningful pattern, or something else (Dictionary.com). According to Webster’s New Explorer Dictionary and Thesaurus, beauty means qualities that give pleasure to the senses or exalt the mind (Merriam-Webster, 42). All of the definitions I found, more or less, described a physical beauty. I believe that there is more to beauty than what is on the outside. Beauty is the moments of pure happiness that make life worth living; A sunrise with your best friend, or a trip to Italy. It can be the places we visit, or the people we see. Most of all, beauty is the stories, and personalities that we all have. It is our history, and it is the things that make us who we are.
Beauty can be classified into so many categories. There is natural beauty ; the kind of beauty found all around us. There is the beauty found in the nature around us. The river flowing down the mountain side that never grows weary can be the most beautiful thing in the world. Maybe it is the way the mountains look just as the sun begins to set. The stars in the sky that go on forever are infinite beauty. People are naturally beautiful, too, though, and there is mathematical proof behind it. But for many, beauty is looking the way society perceives it. It is having the right hair color, and looking the way one should in order to obtain “beauty” by today’s standard of beauty. There is also the “beauty pageant” beauty; looking absolutely stunning in a ball gown, hair in an elegant twist, and having makeup to make women look like porcelain dolls. We put so much focus on beauty , though, that it begins to lose its meaning. It is worth so much today that it has become a billion dollar industry, and people are willing to kill for it.
Everything that is beautiful can be defined by a true mathematical equation. Not only do the ancient works of art, such as Michelangelo’s David or the Greek and Roman buildings fit into this equation, but everything else in nature does, as well (Bourne). Trees, plants, and flowers all match up with the equation perfectly. The equation is called Phi, and it is often referred to as the “golden ration.” Beauty’s true mathematic equation is based on of the Fibonacci sequence (Bourne). Like the equation Pi, Phi is an indefinable number and it is never-ending. Similarly to the beauty found in nature, beauty found in humans can be determined by the Phi equation. It takes the proportions of one’s face, and puts them with the numbers to decide if said person is beautiful or not (Bourne). Those who are naturally beautiful, often times, do not notice it. They use products that they don’t need in order to make themselves beautiful in the way that they perceive it. Those who are not naturally beautiful strive for it, and go to extreme lengths in order to obtain it. It is a shame, though, to see such occurrences, because natural beauty cannot be copied. The way glow when we are in love, or the way our eyes shine when we laugh cannot be duplicated with surgery, or faked with makeup.
Beauty touches us in a way that cannot be defined and often times, it is something that is completely subconscious, and something that is known through evolutionary changes, rather than learned. According to a study done, even babies notice beauty. When shown a picture of a beautiful person, and an unattractive person, the babies all favored the person who happened to be a model (Money). As we grow older, beauty has even more value than just who we should look at. Beauty has become more of a necessity today than ever before. The beauty industry is a billion dollar one. In fact, there are $45 to $66 billion businesses (Romolini). In fact, the average woman in the United States will spend $12,000 annually on beauty expenses (Romolini). As we age even more, the desire to find a makeshift fountain of youth with makeup, and surgery. The social hierarchy that beauty has created has also created a certain desperation to be beautiful. It is perfectly acceptable for women to go in for Botox, or get collagen injections into their lips. Dying hair, or highlighting it to look a certain way also is another thing that we do without even blinking an eye. At the same time, though, there are some women and men alike who will go to extraordinary measures to obtain the beauty that they desire. One often hears stories of women going outside the country to have illegal procedures done, such as an eye color change, or have illegal and highly dangerous liposuction done.
The word beauty has truly created a new life for people, from babies, to teens, to adults alike, and it is not necessarily a good thing. A huge thing that exists today is baby beauty pageants. In most cases, women want their babies to look like little princesses or dolls, and they spend hundreds upon thousands of dollars to make their baby girls look perfect. The children in these pageants have spray tans, fake teeth, and bleached hair. The women want to live vicariously through their children, and as a result the girls are forced to grow up too fast, and live the life of a grown up, rather than be a child. Following this, there is teenage plastic surgery. Teens and pre-teens are going through plastic surgery such as breast implants, liposuction, face lifts, or nose jobs, that are, often times, illegal, and done outside of the United States. Though these are only a few of the horrific things that beauty drives us as a society to do, there are many other things we do, such as go on shows like, "Bridal Plasty," or force us to take extreme, illegal measures.
Is focusing on physical beauty really effective, though? The way Hollywood depicts beauty drives us to acts of desperation, but to what extent? It is like Anna Ford said, "... There are no plain women on television" (Forbs.com). I believe that we should look at beauty with a new perspective; the art of beauty. The way Mona Lisa smiles, or the statues in Rome is what we should focus on. We should trust in our own beauty: Our humanity. We should trust that our expressions, physical attributes, and memories give us true beauty that is on the inside, rather than the outside. It is the beauty that is real, and a type of beauty that everyone has, including the bearded lady at the circus, or the plain person in the corner of the room.
Beauty is not defined as the way our hair falls, or the color of our eyes. Beauty is defined as the tears that fall down our cheeks when we are sad, and the laugh lines we receive throughout the years. Our humanity is what gives us beauty. Our personal stories and the journeys we take change us, and make us unique. Beauty is you, it is me, it is that stranger waiting at the bus stop, or the person you see every day. Find the beauty in everyone; ask their story, and learn what true beauty can be. Why do we let the media, and the social hierarchy we've so willingly created determine what our definition of beauty is?
Ms. Boresen
Expository Writing, Period: 4
Definition Essay
24 March 2011
What is Beauty?
It is ever-changing, and can be seen in a variety of ways. It creates a social hierarchy, and it is how we see the world. Beauty is everything, and nothing, for beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What is beauty, though? Is it a super model? Perhaps it is a new-born baby. Or maybe, it is in the mountains. Is it superficial and vain, or is it realistic, honest, and pure? Beauty is nature, that when it touches us, breathes into us new life and perspective.
While trying to find the perfect definition for beauty, I realized that there are so many possible ones, and we all have our own personal ones, as well. According to Dictionary.com, beauty is defined as the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense or deep satisfaction to the mind, whether arising from sensory manifestations, a meaningful pattern, or something else (Dictionary.com). According to Webster’s New Explorer Dictionary and Thesaurus, beauty means qualities that give pleasure to the senses or exalt the mind (Merriam-Webster, 42). All of the definitions I found, more or less, described a physical beauty. I believe that there is more to beauty than what is on the outside. Beauty is the moments of pure happiness that make life worth living; A sunrise with your best friend, or a trip to Italy. It can be the places we visit, or the people we see. Most of all, beauty is the stories, and personalities that we all have. It is our history, and it is the things that make us who we are.
Beauty can be classified into so many categories. There is natural beauty ; the kind of beauty found all around us. There is the beauty found in the nature around us. The river flowing down the mountain side that never grows weary can be the most beautiful thing in the world. Maybe it is the way the mountains look just as the sun begins to set. The stars in the sky that go on forever are infinite beauty. People are naturally beautiful, too, though, and there is mathematical proof behind it. But for many, beauty is looking the way society perceives it. It is having the right hair color, and looking the way one should in order to obtain “beauty” by today’s standard of beauty. There is also the “beauty pageant” beauty; looking absolutely stunning in a ball gown, hair in an elegant twist, and having makeup to make women look like porcelain dolls. We put so much focus on beauty , though, that it begins to lose its meaning. It is worth so much today that it has become a billion dollar industry, and people are willing to kill for it.
Everything that is beautiful can be defined by a true mathematical equation. Not only do the ancient works of art, such as Michelangelo’s David or the Greek and Roman buildings fit into this equation, but everything else in nature does, as well (Bourne). Trees, plants, and flowers all match up with the equation perfectly. The equation is called Phi, and it is often referred to as the “golden ration.” Beauty’s true mathematic equation is based on of the Fibonacci sequence (Bourne). Like the equation Pi, Phi is an indefinable number and it is never-ending. Similarly to the beauty found in nature, beauty found in humans can be determined by the Phi equation. It takes the proportions of one’s face, and puts them with the numbers to decide if said person is beautiful or not (Bourne). Those who are naturally beautiful, often times, do not notice it. They use products that they don’t need in order to make themselves beautiful in the way that they perceive it. Those who are not naturally beautiful strive for it, and go to extreme lengths in order to obtain it. It is a shame, though, to see such occurrences, because natural beauty cannot be copied. The way glow when we are in love, or the way our eyes shine when we laugh cannot be duplicated with surgery, or faked with makeup.
Beauty touches us in a way that cannot be defined and often times, it is something that is completely subconscious, and something that is known through evolutionary changes, rather than learned. According to a study done, even babies notice beauty. When shown a picture of a beautiful person, and an unattractive person, the babies all favored the person who happened to be a model (Money). As we grow older, beauty has even more value than just who we should look at. Beauty has become more of a necessity today than ever before. The beauty industry is a billion dollar one. In fact, there are $45 to $66 billion businesses (Romolini). In fact, the average woman in the United States will spend $12,000 annually on beauty expenses (Romolini). As we age even more, the desire to find a makeshift fountain of youth with makeup, and surgery. The social hierarchy that beauty has created has also created a certain desperation to be beautiful. It is perfectly acceptable for women to go in for Botox, or get collagen injections into their lips. Dying hair, or highlighting it to look a certain way also is another thing that we do without even blinking an eye. At the same time, though, there are some women and men alike who will go to extraordinary measures to obtain the beauty that they desire. One often hears stories of women going outside the country to have illegal procedures done, such as an eye color change, or have illegal and highly dangerous liposuction done.
The word beauty has truly created a new life for people, from babies, to teens, to adults alike, and it is not necessarily a good thing. A huge thing that exists today is baby beauty pageants. In most cases, women want their babies to look like little princesses or dolls, and they spend hundreds upon thousands of dollars to make their baby girls look perfect. The children in these pageants have spray tans, fake teeth, and bleached hair. The women want to live vicariously through their children, and as a result the girls are forced to grow up too fast, and live the life of a grown up, rather than be a child. Following this, there is teenage plastic surgery. Teens and pre-teens are going through plastic surgery such as breast implants, liposuction, face lifts, or nose jobs, that are, often times, illegal, and done outside of the United States. Though these are only a few of the horrific things that beauty drives us as a society to do, there are many other things we do, such as go on shows like, "Bridal Plasty," or force us to take extreme, illegal measures.
Is focusing on physical beauty really effective, though? The way Hollywood depicts beauty drives us to acts of desperation, but to what extent? It is like Anna Ford said, "... There are no plain women on television" (Forbs.com). I believe that we should look at beauty with a new perspective; the art of beauty. The way Mona Lisa smiles, or the statues in Rome is what we should focus on. We should trust in our own beauty: Our humanity. We should trust that our expressions, physical attributes, and memories give us true beauty that is on the inside, rather than the outside. It is the beauty that is real, and a type of beauty that everyone has, including the bearded lady at the circus, or the plain person in the corner of the room.
Beauty is not defined as the way our hair falls, or the color of our eyes. Beauty is defined as the tears that fall down our cheeks when we are sad, and the laugh lines we receive throughout the years. Our humanity is what gives us beauty. Our personal stories and the journeys we take change us, and make us unique. Beauty is you, it is me, it is that stranger waiting at the bus stop, or the person you see every day. Find the beauty in everyone; ask their story, and learn what true beauty can be. Why do we let the media, and the social hierarchy we've so willingly created determine what our definition of beauty is?
Works Cited
"Beauty | Define Beauty at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Free Online Dictionary for English Definitions. Web. 25 Mar. 2011. <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Beauty>.
Bourne, M. "The Math Behind the Beauty." Interactive Mathematics - Learn Math While You Play with It! Web. 25 Mar. 2011. <http://www.intmath.com/numbers/math-of-beauty.php>.
Jennifer, Romolini. "How Much Do You Spend Each Year to Look Good? - Fashion Beauty on Shine." Shine: Fashion and Beauty, Healthy Living, Parenting, Sex and Love, Career and Money, Food, and More - Shine on Yahoo! Web. 25 Mar. 2011. <http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/beauty/how-much-do-you-spend-each-year-to-look-good-236943>.
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, 2005. Print.
Money, Rachelle. "Baby Study Suggests Beauty Is Not in the Eye of the Beholder | Sunday Herald, The Newspaper | Find Articles at BNET." Find Articles at BNET | News Articles, Magazine Back Issues & Reference Articles on All Topics. Web. 25 Mar. 2011. <http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_20050828/ai_n14909663/>.
"Thoughts and Quotes on Beauty - Forbes.com." Thoughts and Quotes on the Business of Life - Forbes.com. Web. 25 Mar. 2011. <http://thoughts.forbes.com/thoughts/quotes/beauty>.
