Beauty  

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:"La [[beauté]] sera [[Convulsive|CONVULSIVE]] ou ne sera pas." --[[André Breton]] « ''[[Nadja]]'' » : :"La [[beauté]] sera [[Convulsive|CONVULSIVE]] ou ne sera pas." --[[André Breton]] « ''[[Nadja]]'' » :
-:"Le beau est toujours bizarre." (Eng: what is [[beauty|beautiful]] is always [[bizarre]].) --[[Baudelaire]]+:"[[Le beau est toujours bizarre]]." (Eng: what is [[beauty|beautiful]] is always [[bizarre]].) --[[Baudelaire]]
'''Beauty''' is commonly defined as a [[characteristic]] present in a [[person]], [[place]], [[Object (philosophy)|object]] or [[idea]] that provides a [[perception|perceptual]] experience of [[pleasure]], [[Value (personal and cultural)|meaning]] or [[satisfaction]] to the mind or to the eyes, arising from [[sensory]] manifestations such as a shape, color, personality, sound, design or rhythm. Beauty is studied as part of [[aesthetics]], [[sociology]], [[social psychology]] and [[culture]]. Beauty, as a cultural creation, is also extremely [[Commercialism|commercialized]]. '''Beauty''' is commonly defined as a [[characteristic]] present in a [[person]], [[place]], [[Object (philosophy)|object]] or [[idea]] that provides a [[perception|perceptual]] experience of [[pleasure]], [[Value (personal and cultural)|meaning]] or [[satisfaction]] to the mind or to the eyes, arising from [[sensory]] manifestations such as a shape, color, personality, sound, design or rhythm. Beauty is studied as part of [[aesthetics]], [[sociology]], [[social psychology]] and [[culture]]. Beauty, as a cultural creation, is also extremely [[Commercialism|commercialized]].

Revision as of 19:46, 5 February 2011

Bird's Nest and Ferns (1863) by Fidelia Bridges
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Bird's Nest and Ferns (1863) by Fidelia Bridges

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"La beauté sera CONVULSIVE ou ne sera pas." --André Breton « Nadja » :
"Le beau est toujours bizarre." (Eng: what is beautiful is always bizarre.) --Baudelaire

Beauty is commonly defined as a characteristic present in a person, place, object or idea that provides a perceptual experience of pleasure, meaning or satisfaction to the mind or to the eyes, arising from sensory manifestations such as a shape, color, personality, sound, design or rhythm. Beauty is studied as part of aesthetics, sociology, social psychology and culture. Beauty, as a cultural creation, is also extremely commercialized.

The subjective experience of "beauty" often involves the interpretation of some entity as being in balance and harmony with nature, which may lead to feelings of attraction and emotional well-being. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" is a common phrase attributed to this concept.

In its most profound sense, beauty may engender a salient experience of positive reflection about the meaning of one's own existence. An "object of beauty" is anything that reveals or resonates with personal meaning. Hence religious and moral teachings often focus on the divinity and virtue of beauty, and to assert natural beauty as an aspect of a spirituality and truth.

History of beauty

There is evidence that a preference for beautiful faces emerges early in child development, and that the standards of attractiveness are similar across different genders and cultures. Symmetry is also important because it suggests the absence of genetic or acquired defects. Although style and fashion vary widely, cross-cultural research has found a variety of commonalities in people's perception of beauty. The earliest Western theory of beauty can be found in the works of early Greek philosophers from the pre-Socratic period, such as Pythagoras. The Pythagorean school saw a strong connection between mathematics and beauty. In particular, they noted that objects proportioned according to the golden ratio seemed more attractive. Ancient Greek architecture is based on this view of symmetry and proportion.

Classical philosophy and sculptures of men and women produced according to these philosophers' tenets of ideal human beauty were rediscovered in Renaissance Europe, leading to a re-adoption of what became known as a "classical ideal". In terms of female human beauty, a woman whose appearance conforms to these tenets is still called a "classical beauty" or said to possess a "classical beauty", whilst the foundations laid by Greek and Roman artists have also supplied the standard for male beauty in western civilization.

Beauty ideals may contribute to racial oppression. For example, a prevailing idea in American culture has been that black features are less attractive or desirable than white features. The idea that blackness was ugly was highly damaging to the psyche of African Americans, manifesting itself as internalized racism. The black is beautiful cultural movement sought to dispel this notion. Conversely, beauty ideals may also promote racial unity. Mixed race children are often perceived to be more attractive than their parents because their genetic diversity protects them from the inherited errors of their individual parents.

See also




Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Beauty" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.

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