Beauty is a subjective topic, but it does have a profound impact on everyone’s life. It’s something that’s often a driving force behind positive behaviors, such as exercising or eating healthier. It can also lead to a positive mental state, which is a key component in being healthy and happy.
Throughout the centuries, many different people have tried to define what beauty is. Traditionally, it was associated with physical attributes that were considered beautiful. Some examples include fair skin, lustrous hair, and a great figure. But there are now more people who are focusing on confidence, good health, and a sense of determination to be a good person.
A beautiful person is one who is a positive role model for others. This type of person can be found in a number of industries such as law, medicine, and business.
The idea of beauty has been around since antiquity and it has shaped culture throughout history. For example, ancient philosophers like Plato and Aristotle thought that beauty could be a motivation to build culture. They also believed that a contemplative life would help humanity and give us hope for better things.
Traditional conceptions of beauty have been rooted in the Western world, and they are reflected in art, architecture, music and literature. Aristotle, in particular, argued that the aesthetic value of beauty was based on an orderly arrangement of integral parts into a coherent whole, according to proportion, harmony, and symmetry.
Some early philosophers, such as Plotinus, took a more objective view of beauty. They interpreted it as a response to love and desire, but located it within the realm of the Forms.
Augustine, on the other hand, treated beauty as an objective quality. He referred to it as “objectified pleasure.” His account of beauty was characterized by “the experience that something is beautiful” and that the object of that beauty “has a certain pleasure-giving quality.”
Kant, on the other hand, saw beauty as a form of transcendence that inspires purpose. He centered his idea of beauty around goodness and well-being, but he was unable to answer how that inspires a sense of purpose.
Another important early philosophy of beauty theory was by Euclid, who formulated the concept as a mathematical law. His principle was that a line must have the symmetrical relationship of parts to the whole as a long part to a short.
Using this mathematical law, Euclid formulated the beautiful in a series of elegant equations, including his golden ratio and Fibonacci sequence. This formulation of beauty led to a tradition that is still influencing modern philosophy of art.
Aristotle’s and Aquinas’s theories of beauty are a combination of both the classical and mathematical conceptions. Aristotle affirmed the importance of symmetry and proportion, while Aquinas believed that beauty is a product of God and that it was indistinguishable from good.