Do We Become Better People When We Surround Ourselves with Beauty? On Beauty and Good

After satisfying the most basic needs, when we have a place to live and what to eat, when we think we are reasonably happy, we start taking care of beauty. There are those among us who care more about it than anything else. Man has always been sensitive to beauty, but perhaps beauty has never defined man socially as much as today.

We live in a world where narcissistic behavior is dominant. In the past, it was more about being than having. Today it is the opposite: one can be ‘nobody’ to mark one’s existence because it is enough to simply ‘have’. The more we have, the more we want. What do we want the most? We want to be healthy and happy, of course, but the greatest desire that humanity has been aiming for for a good hundred years is to be beautiful above all. We believe that beautiful people live better. As a result, in recent years, we’ve been witness to a flourishing of aesthetic medicine clinics. In fact, in every major city, we will find a place where we can improve our appearance. We want to be beautiful because we live better not only among beautiful people, but also in a beautiful environment.

What Exactly is Beauty?

By definition, beauty is a property belonging to aesthetics. It is the preservation of equal proportions, a harmony of colors and sounds which are perceived by the senses. However, beauty has many faces and is not one-dimensional. What some people think is beautiful is far from beautiful to others. As is known, tastes cannot be discussed, but one thing we can be sure of in this matter is the fact that beauty can be objective and subjective. It can also be spiritual, moral, carnal or natural. Beauty in its form is something perfect that delights and brings one to their knees. Saint Thomas Aquinas – drawing from Plato – called beauty everything pleasing to the eye and included them among the basic and even common features of being. So he saw beauty everywhere, or at least he tried to ascertain it. He also believed that the quality of beauty, including moral beauty, was moderation, that is, the right proportion. As can be seen, in this philosopher’s view the concept of beauty was far from its contemporary understanding, which now has much more in common with the approach of another philosopher. It was Immanuel Kant, who claimed that beauty is what is liked universally, that is, by everyone. Thanks to social media and TV shows, today we all know what a beautiful nose, teeth and smile should look like. It is therefore a universal beauty to which we all aspire.

However, beauty is not just good looks, but something far deeper. The weather can sometimes be beautiful, as well as the building we pass on the way to work, or the vase standing on our desk. Beautiful are the paintings hanging on the gallery walls, but also the names that come back or pass in fashion. Some colors are beautiful, but poetry may also be beautiful sometimes.

Why Do People Need Beautiful Moments?

First of all, just to feel better. If we surround ourselves with objects that are not aesthetic, dirty or ugly, we automatically feel worse among them. In the past, to feel better, you went to an art gallery, as the feeling of being surrounded by outstanding works made the viewer feel like someone special. Today, it is enough to walk to a store with expensive interiors or luxury items. Each of us, after leaving the aesthetic, beautiful room, will feel better.

Can Beauty Influence Our Moral Choices?

Ethics deals with separating moral good from evil. If someone does evil, we say that they act unethically. Ethics also seeks the genesis of evil, asks the question of the reason for such a choice, and explores ways of overcoming it.

Very closely related to ethics are theories of morality, that is, the way of acting in accordance with truth and goodness, which are the superior goal, or at least should be so. Ethicists wonder what effect morality has on human behavior, and why some prefer to break ethical principles rather than follow them.

It seems that when we surround ourselves with honest, righteous people, we also want to be like that. The principle also works the other way according to the proverb: who keeps company with the wolves will learn to howl. If we join a gang of thieves then, despite the initial doubts, by taking part in such activities, we turn into a thief ourselves and after a short time we stop seeing anything wrong in this practice. Behaviors are highly contagious, both good and bad. If we see that someone is lying and is thus getting the intended effect, we may start imitating him – we will start lying to achieve the goal this way.

The basis of all moral values is respect. We don’t cheat someone we respect, nor do we lie out of self-respect. If we start talking badly about ourselves, we encourage others to treat us that way. If someone shows us appreciation, we feel good in their company and we want to be with someone like that.

So it is with honesty, which is telling the truth and respecting it. An honest man can admit their mistake or guilt. Unfortunately, honesty is difficult and requires moral courage to face remorse after the action is revealed. Not everyone likes it and not everyone is ready for it. Honesty is often confused with absolute truthfulness, which is not always desirable and right. Let’s imagine what would happen if everyone said honestly what they thought about another person’s appearance. In such a case, telling someone that they look old and unattractive, which is true, is not an attitude worthy of an honest man. It is necessary to know how and when to use the truth, sometimes it is better to refrain from making judgements at all.

The Art of Making Life Choices

The moral code has the greatest influence on decisions and life choices made by man. Each of us is guided by the ideals or norms which seem to be right to us. The art of making life choices is not the easiest, but each of us learns it with the passing of life. Man has free will, and it is something which allows them to make decisions.

The choice of our life path is influenced by our relatives and friends who try to convince us to make the right decision. Everyone has the right to say their opinion, they can even criticize us, but making the final decision is, anyway, up to the person who will be responsible for it. And it is them who will have to bear the consequences later. Sometimes we have to give up certain values to gain others. For example, when we decide to get married, we give up our freedom. Of course, after marriage, we remain free, but this freedom is limited. However, this decision was made in the name of our happiness.

When making decisions that may affect our lives, we should be guided by a moral code. In short, you have to live in such a way that you are not ashamed to look not only into your eyes in the mirror but also to others.

Read also:

What, however, when we make decisions against our conscience or decisions that are consequently wrong and harmful? How can we continue to live with such stigma? The consequences of a wrong decision can be tragic. Not only do we inflict suffering on ourselves, but sometimes we also condemn other people to the suffering that is the result of our choice. Many people in this situation escape. We resort to drugs, gambling or making more bad decisions. A wrong, hurtful decision does not allow us to live a good and happy life any longer. Not only do we cease to be sensitive, but we often simply do not have the strength to continue to function normally. It would be best if we could run away from ourselves or at least turn back time. It is still good if we have drawn conclusions from a false step and there is a desire to improve the situation within us. Worst of all, if we believe that nothing can be done about it, we wade into sadness and regret.

It is said that in making important life choices, we should listen to ourselves more than others. Intuition and heart are our greatest ally and one must always act in harmony with themselves. Unfortunately, this is not always possible, especially if the good or lack of it in third parties come into play. Sometimes steps are taken, guided by the good not of oneself, but of others. History knows a lot of such examples, sometimes very extreme, where someone even gives their own life in the name of saving others. However, these are exceptional cases.

Today, many of us simply forget that no one has such an impact on our lives as we do. Modern man is sometimes adrift, fearful, and insecure in addition to a tendency to depression. After all, each of us is the master of one’s fate. It depends on us whether we will be happy or quite the opposite. We also like to look for those responsible for the situation that we have led to ourselves. We blame our loved ones for our unsuccessful lives, starting with our parents. We forget that it is thanks to them that we found ourselves in this world, and we turn gratitude towards this fact into regret or even resentment. We also like to accuse our spouse or partner of the cause of any misfortune. We say then: “It’s your fault that I’ve changed that way. I used to be completely different, but you made me want nothing anymore.” The easiest way is to stay helpless and do nothing, blaming everyone around you.

Psychologist Jacek Santorski in his book „Dobre życie” (“A Good Life”) writes that his research clearly shows that over 20% of adult Poles adopt a passive attitude towards fate. It follows that these people put themselves in the role of the victim instead of looking for the strength to change the situation. Gradually increasing powerlessness and passivity slowly turn into stagnation in life, which is ultimately a source of fear and leads to huge dissatisfaction with one’s own life. In this example, it is easy to see how important it is for us to be able to make the right decisions. Man has the ability and potential to change their life at any moment. It is never too late.

A person who becomes good automatically becomes beautiful in our eyes. It has been known for a long time that good ennobles and there is no more beautiful feature of human character than this one. Let’s also remember that external beauty passes and a beautiful interior never gets old and will always make a good impression. So it is worth working on it. Beauty has always gone hand in hand with good.