Blog #14

I agree with Armstrong when he states, “To regard beauty as a luxury adornment or a social signifier was to miss the true potential of the experience.” I believe what he is trying to say is that we will miss out on the experiencing true beauty that will “elevate the soul” if we focus on the social class and material aspects that can be associated with beauty. I also view beauty in this way. I believe that there are infinite definitions of beauty and defining beauty should be determined on a personal level, however, beauty should not be limited to this idea of social status and materialistic qualities. Beauty is about looking beneath the surface and viewing someone or something in a new way; as Armstrong describes it, “…We see things that we know we have neglected or betrayed, and we feel an astonishing combination of anguish and delight.” And I believe that my community, who I define as my family and close friends, feels the same way about beauty too. My family is not of a particular high social status. Similarly, we are not consumed by material things. We have a lot of beauty in our lives, and I can guess most of the beauty is not based off of some materialistic idea. My community would define beauty as a moment, person, place, etc. that could somehow move them and cause them to experience this strong emotion of elevating the soul. With so many definitions and experiences associated with beauty, every individual can feel the joy, but also pain, of what they feel is beautiful.