It's more than just a cliché. In Asia, big bellies are often a sign of wealth in men and appear to be attractive there. Elsewhere, it is the artificial enlargements or reductions of various parts of the body that attract more attention and admiration. That brings us to the central question of this blog post: what is beauty?

 

"What seduces people most is beauty"

Paulo Coelho

 

So let's ponder a little together about what beauty is and what it does to us. Is it like the Brazilian writer says that beauty seduces us? There is probably a lot to be said about this statement. Beauty invites, it opens thoughts and has an inherent attraction. When a beautiful person comes into view, we notice it and follow the resulting pull, whether consciously or unconsciously.

But you are now saying, "Wait a minute! That is a very general statement!" Of course you are right. We haven't even asked ourselves what it is that determines whether we perceive something as beautiful or not.

 

The cultural values

From a social-psychological point of view, the answer is quite simple: We perceive that as beautiful, which is perceived as beautiful due to the currently valid ideals of beauty in the society in which we live or with which we identify ourselves. Of course there are individual opinions here and there and that changes from time to time.

You probably know how that is meant. In the 70s, bell-bottoms were the fashion, the 80s were dominated by neon colors and so on. The fashion world is particularly fast-paced in its ideals. This year gold and black are in, but two years ago these tones were taboo.

It is 

But if you have a large bosom or bones

 

Still, one wonders if it is