Beauty – An Emotional Response

Beauty is often defined as a mental attribute of things which makes these things enjoyable to see. Such things as landscapes, sunsets, beautiful people and creative works of art are all part of beauty, along with taste and aesthetics. Beauty, with art and culture, is perhaps the most important area of aesthetics, arguably the most important part of philosophy. And while aesthetic value is often discussed in academic circles it is beauty that is most often used in advertising.

beauty

In any case, beauty and art go hand in the broadest sense of the term. This means that both beauty and art can be used to describe a subjective quality of an object or a person, which someone may find attractive. While this is not to say that all forms of art and beauty are equal, one way that they differ is that one can be used to describe something that one would find unattractive while another would be used to describe something that one would find attractive.

Beauty, art, culture and aesthetic function in our society to influence and shape our beliefs, our self-image and our response to stimulation. One of the more obvious ways that beauty is related to emotion is through sexual appeal. Men, as well as women, use beauty and physical attraction to establish a relationship that is societally acceptable and in some cases even romantic. Beauty and art can provide a positive emotional response that helps us to define ourselves and to feel a connection to a significant other.