Tell us, What is Beauty to You?

In today's world almost everything we see, do, think, and say is a result of society; everything is socially constructed.
One example is the idea of beauty.

Here are a few questions to get you thinking about it...

What is beautiful to you, physically?
Why?
What causes us to see women or men in magazines and know (or consider) them to be beautiful?
Does it come from the make-up they are wearing? the clothes they are wearing?
Can beauty be created?
Can true beauty be created?
Is it dependant upon the person and what 'nature' gave to them?
Do we agree with how society (media) portrays beauty?
Are our ideas of what beauty is coinciding with our actions?
Should anything be changed?
If so, what should we do to change it?

With those questions in mind, describe in the comments section below what beauty/beautiful means to you. This does not include inner beauty, strictly the physical aspects. Explain why you feel that way.

13 comments:

Rabia said...

"beauty is in the eye of the beholder" ... =p

Anonymous said...

beauty for girls to me is someone with nice clear skin, eyes that stand out, soft maintained hair, and on the fit/smaller side. beauty for men is a little different.men i like bigger guys, not the thinner side, brown or blonde hair, athletic, tall is a must, and a good white smile. that is what is beautiful to me.

Anonymous said...

I think that beauty is very subjective and not really a yes or no answer. It's a broad and DEEP idea. beauty is an idea more than a destination and can be looked at from a variety of perspectives. Personality, experience and preference effects beauty as much as make up does. In other words, I agree with mahi ve... beauty IS in the eye of the beholder.

Anonymous said...

I don't think we realize how much a part of looks society plays. If that makes sense. We all hope and come across as if we don't care, or that it is in our hands to decide what is beautiful and what isn't, but there is no way I am leaving the house without looking presentable. Why is that? It is because we need to feel acceptable and that is the way society says is acceptable.

Anonymous said...

My definition of beautiful is completely different when I am talking about others vs. myself. For example, when I am a little overweight I am not beautiful. When my hair is not done I am not beautiful. When I am around other women I am not beautiful. Most of the time I am not beautiful. However, there are some days when my hair is going pretty good and I am wearing cute clothes that I think "Okay, I am pretty cute." But it only lasts until I see a thinner more beautiful girl and then I am once again ugly (at least to myself.)
My definition of beautiful when describing others is someone who wears nice well fitted clothes, has a great smile, styled hair (doesn't matter long or short), and confidence. Why do I only see my fat belly when I look at myself but hardly notice when somebody else is overweight?

Anonymous said...

I know we're not suppose to talk about inner beauty, but truthfully I think that is one of the key factors of outer beauty. When someone is self-confident and happy with themselves, it shows through in their smile and their posture...two physical attributes that determine beauty in my opinion. If someone is at peace with themselves and their situation, it shows in their eyes...another large part of what outer beauty is in my opinion. Yes, I believe that our culture has shaped us into a society who looks for a blemish free and strong featured face, but put as much make-up as you will on a miserable person and unless they are the best actor/actress in the world, they still just look miserable.

Toni said...

I think beauty is all about confidence. If you aren't the most beautiful person ,the way you act and the way you carry yourself can make you appear more beautiful.

I do however buy into the big boob, skinny waisted stereotype because of the media... they tell us that is what is sexy and so we criticize ourselves if we don't have that, which I don't. I wish my boobs were bigger but really just because society tells me it's attractive, I think if they were big they'd be annoying, but yet I want them anyway.

Anonymous said...

I think beauty is different for everyone, but I do think that society has a lot of control over it. I could say that it doesn't affect me, that I am happy with who I am, that I dress and do what I want to. But I still find myself shopping for stylish clothes at the mall, putting on make-up, and feeling self conscious if I don't look just right. Even if I don't like to let on that I fall into the society trap, I would be an idiot if I disagreed and said that it had no weight on my decisions. People are just altruistic and ignore the real facts to try to be above it all, when they really aren't.

Anonymous said...

Okay, first off, I love the blog! It looks great! I also love the photo's of the daily routine that women go through. It goes to show how beauty is socially constructed. I feel that if people were to see women who just got up...is not socially acceptable. I feel that men and women have to go through the process to be socially accepted as beautiful. It's nobody's fault except society's. It's interesting.

Anonymous said...

Physical beauty has to do with form or shape, cleanliness and tidyness,
modesty in dress, cheerfulness, properly fitting clothes, natural is better than artificial, posture, and many other characteristics.

kdalomia said...

Beauty has a huge impact on first impressions in todays society. When we start dating someone, we say we date them for who they are on the inside but the whole reason we approached them in the first place and got to that point was because of the physical attraction. Each person has their own idea of what they think is beautiful. Going on with what mahi_ve said...it is in the eye of the beholder.

Melissa said...

I feel most beautiful when I really feel beauitful. I love my husband but no matter how sexy or pretty he thinks I am...I am still self conscience until I start to feel good about my self. Everytime I feel good looking and he says I look great...that is when I actually believe him. I don't feel pretty until I am happy where I am. But sometime outside influence do affect me. Seeing beauitful women and magazines can make me feel like I am further away from my goal. I didn't always feel like this. It has mainly been since I had my baby and gained weight because of that. I have been trying to get back to what I use to be and it has been hard on me physically and emotionally. But it really all comes down to confidence.

Anonymous said...

Beauty is interesting while society has its definition of what makes a person beautiful there is still some truth in the saying 'beauty is in the eye of the beholder.' But now I realize while that is true it is beacause everyone has influences in their life that may attract them to someone who others might not be as a attracted to. Some girls don't wear make up and if guys are attracted to them then they aren't neccessarily fixing their ideas on beauty to match what society does but they are fixing their views to perhaps match what it to what has influenced them into seeing beauty that way.