Philosophy of Everything

Beauty

Beauty. This is a difficult word to define, even for those of us who have been taught that it means an ideal state or condition of the soul—or in other words, what we want from life. Beauty has many meanings and shades; but as far as I can tell, all these definitions are merely tautologies: "beautiful" by definition is something you find beautiful. And yet beauty seems to me to be more than just another way of saying pretty or nice. It's not about appearances at all, though appearance is certainly part of it. When someone says she wants to look good, they usually mean that they don't like their face. They say so because they know there is no intrinsic value in how one looks, only in what one does with oneself. But this isn't true either. To truly appreciate your own body is essential if you're going to feel comfortable within it. As long as we think that our bodies are ugly, then we will always compare ourselves unfavorably to others, whether through envy or jealousy. We will also tend to judge people based on how they look rather than what they do. In short, we'll live a kind of double-life. On the one hand we acknowledge that beauty is real and desirable, but on the other hand we pretend that beauty doesn't exist at all. If you've ever had a friend who was constantly trying to improve his looks, you might well have felt this way yourself. You probably thought that he wanted to look better when he wasn't around. Or maybe you were secretly glad that his efforts seemed to make him happy. Either way, you'd never admit it out loud. But the truth is that beauty is not simply a matter of appearance, however much it may seem like it is.In Plato's Symposium (written circa 360 B.C.), Socrates tries to describe love between men and women using terms drawn from music. He claims that certain qualities of sound are analogous to sexual desire. One man desires another because he likes the way he sounds, while a woman loves her lover because she finds him pleasing to hear. There is nothing wrong with either opinion, but both are incomplete. Both fail to take into account how sound relates directly to form and shape. Music, according to Plato, is inherently related to movement. Sound itself is not physical; it exists only in relation to space. So although one man might enjoy listening to another talk about his car, this enjoyment would be purely aesthetic. The speaker wouldn't necessarily be interested in any other aspect of his listener except his voice. Likewise, the female ear hears every male voice equally. She doesn't prefer some over others, since each is exactly alike. Only when two voices are harmonious do they create pleasure. This is why lovers often share musical tastes. Their conversations become less about things that interest them individually and more about how they complement each other. This is what Plato meant when he said that beauty lies in harmony. A perfect relationship between two people is akin to a melody sung perfectly together. If you listen closely enough, you'll realize that everyone has a different voice, even if they sound similar. For example, if you play Mozart's " la giovinezza" on the violin, it will be very easy to distinguish the individual notes of each instrument. Yet try playing this piece on a piano and you won't get anywhere near this level of clarity. Even if you played it perfectly, no one would ever mistake your performance for a duet. Everyone's style is unique. No two voices could ever sound identical.This same principle applies to all forms of art, including sculpture. Two sculptures made by the same artist may look almost identical, but they will never sound or smell or taste the same. Sculptures aren't mere objects. They are expressions of culture. Each is influenced by its creator's personality, beliefs, and experiences. In addition, every work is subtly altered by time. After thousands of years, most statues lose their original color. Some change shape. Others fade away entirely. Still others remain recognizable but unrecognizable at the same time. All these factors contribute to sculptural evolution. But it's impossible to measure these changes accurately. What makes an antique sculpture valuable isn't how old it is but how rare it is. Every ancient artifact is simultaneously both unique and familiar. And so is beauty. It is created anew every day, as new relationships are formed between individuals and communities.A sculptor who specializes in faces creates different pieces depending on whom he sees, where he goes, and how he feels. His talent and inspiration are directly tied to his environment. These external elements combine with inner ones to give rise to different styles of expression. Because there are infinite ways to interpret nature, artists inevitably come up with hundreds of interpretations of any given subject. By combining various techniques and materials, they can express a diversity of ideas. As a result, we are continually surprised by what we see. The world becomes a living canvas, forever changing and renewing itself. Beauty is essentially an act of creation.We tend to think of art as existing outside of everyday life, but it is actually an integral part of it. Art gives meaning to existence. Without it, we would have no sense of purpose. Our lives would lack direction. And without beauty, we would never experience joy. Like the senses, art is a gift that helps us to understand ourselves and connect with others. The best art reveals truths that otherwise elude us. It teaches us to appreciate ourselves and others. It allows us to recognize our place in society. Through it we discover how fortunate we really are.Art doesn't just communicate information; it also communicates emotions. It shows us how to feel. This is especially true when it comes to music. Listen carefully to a song, and you'll notice that it tells stories. The lyrics of songs reflect the personalities of their creators, as well as those of listeners. Often they refer to events that took place in history. Sometimes they speak to specific individuals. Other times they evoke abstract concepts. Songs are often metaphors for life. They encourage us to question ourselves and others. That's why we find it so hard to stop listening to a favorite tune once we've started. Listening to a song is like reading a book. Once you start, you can't put it down until you finish.But it's not only music that invites reflection. Painting, sculpture, poetry, and drama all invite us to ponder. Whether or not we agree with what we see, we can't help thinking about it. In fact, if we allow ourselves to dwell on a particular image too long, we risk becoming obsessed. We might spend days analyzing a painting, dissecting it to determine its hidden messages. We might scrutinize every brushstroke, searching for clues to the painter's identity. Or perhaps we'll decide that the artist was simply crazy. Whatever the case, the urge to analyze is irresistible. Most of us rarely consider how much we rely on images as a source of knowledge and wisdom. We assume that the human brain is naturally equipped with a built-in capacity to process visual information. But in truth, this is not the case. The eye and mind are not separate entities. Rather, they work together to produce unified representations of reality. Without sight, we would have no idea what anything looked like. We wouldn't know what colors were, or what shapes or numbers represented. We couldn't recognize friends or enemies. We would be unable to learn language or identify the parts of speech. We would be blind. Yet we depend on vision for everything. If we didn't have eyes, we would die. Our minds need to be trained to use the eye. And in order to do this, we must constantly interact with the world.When we see something beautiful, we feel a sudden surge of emotion. Something inside us recognizes it immediately. We feel it in our hearts. We feel it in our guts. We feel it in our skin. We feel it in our souls. We feel it in our heads. We feel it everywhere. Beauty touches us in places we don't consciously perceive. It causes a reaction in our unconscious mind. We feel it in our subconscious. We feel it in our subliminal selves. We feel it in our id. So in final, what is beauty? Is it an ideal state of the soul? A feeling that originates from within? An emotional response to art? Or something else altogether? Perhaps it is all three. Perhaps beauty is a collection of all these elements. Maybe it is even more than that.I suspect that the answer to this question depends on who you ask. Those who claim that beauty is merely an aesthetic quality will point out that it has little to do with social conventions. They will insist that it is not dependent on gender or race. They will argue that it transcends age, wealth, and position. As long as we follow their rules, we will be able to appreciate it. So let me ask you, dear reader: What is beauty, for you?