A few words on beauty.
http://community.livejournal.com/ontd_feminism/424824.html
That is a recent post from one of the feminist comms I frequent. The post relates to a message painted on top of a bridge in Alabama, It states "You are beautiful". There were several posters who seemed to find this message "problematic" and stated they hate it and everything it implies. But what does it imply that is so wrong? So I thought about it though, because several people insisted this message was directed at women and that women don't need more messages centering on their appearance. Yet women are never mentioned in the message, why does it automatically have to relate to women? My frustration with the people who say they dislike it (though I respect their opinions blah blah etc, I am just sharing my feelings here in my blog which is for feelings) is that I completely do not understand their reasoning. Several people said, why does the word beautiful get conflated with good? Because Beauty is something that enriches the world? I mean, beauty is good because it makes us feel good but what is defined as beautiful is entirely up to each individual person. That said on another tact, and the reason this reasoning, that appearance "shouldnt matter" that our physical form is somehow unimportant to who we are as people is far more IMO problematic.
To say no one ever needs be told they are beautiful is to say that no one's face, no ones body is important to them. It "doesnt matter". and I am sitting here thinking "how can you say that?" our faces, our eyes and our hands all these things are how we communicate, they are the FIRST thing a person will notice about us, in this society people are categorized by their RACE an arbitrary construct that exists to separate the white from the non white, all on basis of APPEARANCE. In our society we are bombarded by images in the media of what a beautiful woman and man look like, and this image is shoved down our throats day after day that THIS is what "beauty" is and they hijack the word, the concept of beauty from us and try to fit into their narrow mold and the rest of us who dont fit, we are told are ugly and plain, we dont matter, because in America, image is EVERYTHING and after all that, how can you say it doesnt matter? In a society where a man or woman will be considered less desirable, less attractive, less HUMAN because of their skin color, the shape of their nose or eyes, the texture of their hair, how can you say that appearance DOESNT MATTER? These things dont exist in a magical space separate from us, our body parts, our faces, our skin color, its all a part of who we are. It's how people judge us, and how we might know others like us even without ever speaking to them (its also how assumptions can be made about who we are or arent or what ethnic groups we belong to) these things are part of our identity, they are not the sole part or even the most important part but they are important and they DO matter. Maybe appearance shouldnt matter, but that doesnt change the fact that in our society it DOES.
I refuse to believe that telling girls, all girls, but especially girls of color, that they are beautiful is bad. Yes society DOES place far too much focus on girl's appearance, and girls worth should not be tied solely to their appearance. Unfortunately this will not stop society from doing so anyway. So we need to tell girls they are beautiful, but also that they are smart, capable, valuable human beings.
Words are not meaningless, they have power. The word "Beautiful" has a unique power. It is a word that can be tied with both the aesthetic and the emotional. We often refer to things that can create a powerful positive emotion within us as beautiful. We refer to things or people that enrich our lives or our world as beautiful. To say that beauty is only about the images on the tv, or only a picture in a frame, to say that beauty is something that can only apply to women or certain kinds of women is to say that beauty is not for everyone. The word beautiful then becomes a word that isnt for everyone, that can be applied to anyone. When by virtue of its meaning, it should, it can. Beauty to me is a light that comes from within. Its the night sky, it's the immortal soul within, its a smile from a stranger, its the words in a poem, its the ruins of forgotten civilizations, its the ties of friendship, its the flowers growing amongst graves, its the air I breathe, its what makes my life worth living, the beauty in the world around me. Are the things that I named above, are they beautiful because they "look nice" or because of the affect they have on me? The way they make me feel? To me, beautiful is anything and everything that has a profound affect on us as humans. What we see as beautiful in the world, are things and people and places, we value.
That's why western art is considered by many in our society as the most "beautiful" its why white women are considered the most "beautiful" its why we sing "America the beautiful" in grade school. Because these are things our society values. When you think something is beautiful, its not just because it "looks nice" its because it means something to you. If only for a moment. So a message that says "you are beautiful" to the general populace isnt just saying "you look nice today" its saying "your existence has value in this world". and I for one dont think there's anything wrong with that.
So flist, what does this word mean to you? What is beauty to you? Do you think the message in the post on ontd_fem is problematic? Dont worry even if you disagree with me I wont flip out or anything. I am just curious if others see what I am saying or feel as I do about this. It just weighed on my mind all last night. As someone who considers herself an artist, the concept of beauty is very important to me, as is the word. When I thought about the word, this what I came up with, this post you see here. I am interesting to hear what others have to say though. (also thank you ALL who commented on my last post, I appreciate it and appreciated that everyone was supportive and ultimately I chose to ignore the girl for my peace of mind and she hasnt tried to contact me again so all is well!)
That is a recent post from one of the feminist comms I frequent. The post relates to a message painted on top of a bridge in Alabama, It states "You are beautiful". There were several posters who seemed to find this message "problematic" and stated they hate it and everything it implies. But what does it imply that is so wrong? So I thought about it though, because several people insisted this message was directed at women and that women don't need more messages centering on their appearance. Yet women are never mentioned in the message, why does it automatically have to relate to women? My frustration with the people who say they dislike it (though I respect their opinions blah blah etc, I am just sharing my feelings here in my blog which is for feelings) is that I completely do not understand their reasoning. Several people said, why does the word beautiful get conflated with good? Because Beauty is something that enriches the world? I mean, beauty is good because it makes us feel good but what is defined as beautiful is entirely up to each individual person. That said on another tact, and the reason this reasoning, that appearance "shouldnt matter" that our physical form is somehow unimportant to who we are as people is far more IMO problematic.
To say no one ever needs be told they are beautiful is to say that no one's face, no ones body is important to them. It "doesnt matter". and I am sitting here thinking "how can you say that?" our faces, our eyes and our hands all these things are how we communicate, they are the FIRST thing a person will notice about us, in this society people are categorized by their RACE an arbitrary construct that exists to separate the white from the non white, all on basis of APPEARANCE. In our society we are bombarded by images in the media of what a beautiful woman and man look like, and this image is shoved down our throats day after day that THIS is what "beauty" is and they hijack the word, the concept of beauty from us and try to fit into their narrow mold and the rest of us who dont fit, we are told are ugly and plain, we dont matter, because in America, image is EVERYTHING and after all that, how can you say it doesnt matter? In a society where a man or woman will be considered less desirable, less attractive, less HUMAN because of their skin color, the shape of their nose or eyes, the texture of their hair, how can you say that appearance DOESNT MATTER? These things dont exist in a magical space separate from us, our body parts, our faces, our skin color, its all a part of who we are. It's how people judge us, and how we might know others like us even without ever speaking to them (its also how assumptions can be made about who we are or arent or what ethnic groups we belong to) these things are part of our identity, they are not the sole part or even the most important part but they are important and they DO matter. Maybe appearance shouldnt matter, but that doesnt change the fact that in our society it DOES.
I refuse to believe that telling girls, all girls, but especially girls of color, that they are beautiful is bad. Yes society DOES place far too much focus on girl's appearance, and girls worth should not be tied solely to their appearance. Unfortunately this will not stop society from doing so anyway. So we need to tell girls they are beautiful, but also that they are smart, capable, valuable human beings.
Words are not meaningless, they have power. The word "Beautiful" has a unique power. It is a word that can be tied with both the aesthetic and the emotional. We often refer to things that can create a powerful positive emotion within us as beautiful. We refer to things or people that enrich our lives or our world as beautiful. To say that beauty is only about the images on the tv, or only a picture in a frame, to say that beauty is something that can only apply to women or certain kinds of women is to say that beauty is not for everyone. The word beautiful then becomes a word that isnt for everyone, that can be applied to anyone. When by virtue of its meaning, it should, it can. Beauty to me is a light that comes from within. Its the night sky, it's the immortal soul within, its a smile from a stranger, its the words in a poem, its the ruins of forgotten civilizations, its the ties of friendship, its the flowers growing amongst graves, its the air I breathe, its what makes my life worth living, the beauty in the world around me. Are the things that I named above, are they beautiful because they "look nice" or because of the affect they have on me? The way they make me feel? To me, beautiful is anything and everything that has a profound affect on us as humans. What we see as beautiful in the world, are things and people and places, we value.
That's why western art is considered by many in our society as the most "beautiful" its why white women are considered the most "beautiful" its why we sing "America the beautiful" in grade school. Because these are things our society values. When you think something is beautiful, its not just because it "looks nice" its because it means something to you. If only for a moment. So a message that says "you are beautiful" to the general populace isnt just saying "you look nice today" its saying "your existence has value in this world". and I for one dont think there's anything wrong with that.
So flist, what does this word mean to you? What is beauty to you? Do you think the message in the post on ontd_fem is problematic? Dont worry even if you disagree with me I wont flip out or anything. I am just curious if others see what I am saying or feel as I do about this. It just weighed on my mind all last night. As someone who considers herself an artist, the concept of beauty is very important to me, as is the word. When I thought about the word, this what I came up with, this post you see here. I am interesting to hear what others have to say though. (also thank you ALL who commented on my last post, I appreciate it and appreciated that everyone was supportive and ultimately I chose to ignore the girl for my peace of mind and she hasnt tried to contact me again so all is well!)