Beauty
Many people strive to be beautiful or to be surrounded by beauty. However, does everyone know what beauty is? In the dictionary, beauty is “the quality present in a thing or person that gives intense pleasure or deep satisfaction to the mind, whether arising from sensory manifestations a meaningful design or pattern, or something else.” Beauty can be nature, can be a person, and can be something inside a person that has no name. However, is it enough to be surrounded by beauty? I definitely say no, because beauty should be shared with others, because beauty can bring pain, and because beauty is a façade which easily fades away.
Having everything we want and being surrounded by beautiful things can be very pleasing. However, it does not guarantee happiness. According to Into the Wild, Christopher McCandless thought being in the wild, surrounded by nature would make him happy. He wanted to escape from society, school, and his family. However, when the beauty of nature was all around him, he was not happy because he had no one to share it with. Another person who learns from this lesson is Richard Rodriguez. According to The Achievement of Desire, he felt ashamed that his parents were uneducated. He always read at home instead of talking to his parents. He did pretty well in his academic life; he got a scholarship, and he was surrounded by books. However, many years later, he said, “I wanted something…. I could not say exactly what. I told myself that I wanted a more passionate life…. I wanted to be less alone”(194). He went home, and he realized the happiness is something that can be shared with his family. Beauty can be everywhere, but the real beauty exists when people share happiness with others.
While beauty can bring pleasure, it can also bring pain, like opium. People find beauty in using opium because it stimulates the nerves and gives them a sense of pleasure, but the side effects it has on their body and actions, makes them very ill. Although they find beauty in using opium, they do not find true happiness, because it enslaves them and causes them to do immoral things at times. It causes more pain than joy in the end. Moreover, some people use their beauty to get ahead in a bad way, and also many people are obsessed with beauty. Many women use their beauty to seduce men in order to destroy them. According to the Apocrypha, “Judith seduced the enemy commander Holofernes. When he was fully enamored with her and lowered his guards, Judith assassinated him” (“Judith” 1). Holofernes’s death reminds us that beauty is like poison which brings pain to people. In China, a beautiful girl, XiShi was sent to bewitch the Prince of Wu and make him neglect his political duties. She also gave the secrets of Wu’s government to her country. In the end, the emperor of XiShi’s country invaded Wu country, and then Wu country was destroyed and the Prince of Wu was killed at the same time. Holofernes and the Prince of Wu all were tricked by beauty. It is easy to see that pain often comes after pleasure.
Furthermore, physical beauty can be a façade, an illusion. For example, Paris Hilton is very pretty; however she drove drunk illegally and the court said she should go to jail for 45 days, but she did not want to go. She kept making the same mistake again, which is why she went to jail. She thought because she was pretty, famous, and rich that she could get away with it, but she could not. The fact proves that if a person is beautiful on the outside, it is not enough. A person has to be beautiful on the inside also. In China, many famous stars were so popular when they were young, such as Aming Mao, and Yuying Yang. However, many fans do not appreciate them anymore because they are getting older. Their beauty has faded away. It strongly shows that beauty on the outside cannot last forever. It also explains how general public treat the beauty. Additionally, beauty can be superficial and fake. People use many methods to try to achieve perfection. They buy expensive clothes and make-up. They also get plastic surgery. Those do not bring them beauty. In fact, it is just opposite. Beauty makes people lose their own selves. Many people become vain after their process of achieving “beauty.”
It is acceptable to pursue beauty. However, beauty should not mean everything. I still believe people need to be concerned about that which is inside them, such as their soul, their spirit. Beauty just on the outside can be boring because it might make people have no personality. People can be beautiful inside because they are brave, because they are kind-hearted, and because they are selfless. Life is not limited by beauty; it should consist of something else. There are many things in the world more important than beauty, such as family value, friendship, love and so on.
It has been said “people always grow up through pain.” If people have fake beauty, it is time to get rid of it and learn from it. It definitely is a mistake that people depend on beauty much of the time. Why do not we spend more time strengthening ourselves by learning rather than wasting time searching for “beauty?” I believe that people can still succeed without good looks. People can still feel happy and warm without big and beautiful houses when they stay with their families. I think life is a long journey for everyone; there will be more things for people who truly pursue.
Having everything we want and being surrounded by beautiful things can be very pleasing. However, it does not guarantee happiness. According to Into the Wild, Christopher McCandless thought being in the wild, surrounded by nature would make him happy. He wanted to escape from society, school, and his family. However, when the beauty of nature was all around him, he was not happy because he had no one to share it with. Another person who learns from this lesson is Richard Rodriguez. According to The Achievement of Desire, he felt ashamed that his parents were uneducated. He always read at home instead of talking to his parents. He did pretty well in his academic life; he got a scholarship, and he was surrounded by books. However, many years later, he said, “I wanted something…. I could not say exactly what. I told myself that I wanted a more passionate life…. I wanted to be less alone”(194). He went home, and he realized the happiness is something that can be shared with his family. Beauty can be everywhere, but the real beauty exists when people share happiness with others.
While beauty can bring pleasure, it can also bring pain, like opium. People find beauty in using opium because it stimulates the nerves and gives them a sense of pleasure, but the side effects it has on their body and actions, makes them very ill. Although they find beauty in using opium, they do not find true happiness, because it enslaves them and causes them to do immoral things at times. It causes more pain than joy in the end. Moreover, some people use their beauty to get ahead in a bad way, and also many people are obsessed with beauty. Many women use their beauty to seduce men in order to destroy them. According to the Apocrypha, “Judith seduced the enemy commander Holofernes. When he was fully enamored with her and lowered his guards, Judith assassinated him” (“Judith” 1). Holofernes’s death reminds us that beauty is like poison which brings pain to people. In China, a beautiful girl, XiShi was sent to bewitch the Prince of Wu and make him neglect his political duties. She also gave the secrets of Wu’s government to her country. In the end, the emperor of XiShi’s country invaded Wu country, and then Wu country was destroyed and the Prince of Wu was killed at the same time. Holofernes and the Prince of Wu all were tricked by beauty. It is easy to see that pain often comes after pleasure.
Furthermore, physical beauty can be a façade, an illusion. For example, Paris Hilton is very pretty; however she drove drunk illegally and the court said she should go to jail for 45 days, but she did not want to go. She kept making the same mistake again, which is why she went to jail. She thought because she was pretty, famous, and rich that she could get away with it, but she could not. The fact proves that if a person is beautiful on the outside, it is not enough. A person has to be beautiful on the inside also. In China, many famous stars were so popular when they were young, such as Aming Mao, and Yuying Yang. However, many fans do not appreciate them anymore because they are getting older. Their beauty has faded away. It strongly shows that beauty on the outside cannot last forever. It also explains how general public treat the beauty. Additionally, beauty can be superficial and fake. People use many methods to try to achieve perfection. They buy expensive clothes and make-up. They also get plastic surgery. Those do not bring them beauty. In fact, it is just opposite. Beauty makes people lose their own selves. Many people become vain after their process of achieving “beauty.”
It is acceptable to pursue beauty. However, beauty should not mean everything. I still believe people need to be concerned about that which is inside them, such as their soul, their spirit. Beauty just on the outside can be boring because it might make people have no personality. People can be beautiful inside because they are brave, because they are kind-hearted, and because they are selfless. Life is not limited by beauty; it should consist of something else. There are many things in the world more important than beauty, such as family value, friendship, love and so on.
It has been said “people always grow up through pain.” If people have fake beauty, it is time to get rid of it and learn from it. It definitely is a mistake that people depend on beauty much of the time. Why do not we spend more time strengthening ourselves by learning rather than wasting time searching for “beauty?” I believe that people can still succeed without good looks. People can still feel happy and warm without big and beautiful houses when they stay with their families. I think life is a long journey for everyone; there will be more things for people who truly pursue.
posted by listening^_^ at 9:40 PM
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