The debate on beauty has been a polarizing question of interest since ancient history. Plato and Aristotle philosophized about it and in 2023 it has turned into the presence or absence of a like on a picture. The like feature present on numerous social media platforms, specifically Instagram, has effectively transformed the debate on whether beauty is objective or subjective from something that was theorized with members of the community into a vicious cycle of liking and scrolling in solitude.
In the presentation “How the Brain Causes Social Polarization: The Example of Aesthetic Values,” Norberto Grzywacz discussed pleasing aesthetic perceptions regarding neuroanatomy and how those perceptions mold an individual’s discernment of beauty. Vision is processed in the visual cortex; however, beauty is processed by four different parts of the brain in tandem: the rostral cingulate, ventral basal ganglia, anterior insula, and orbitofrontal cortex. The orbitofrontal cortex is where Grzywacz proposed aesthetic value is assigned. The brain prefers an average amount of symmetry, balance, and complexity and these components have a presence in the beauty standard across different cultures and time periods. Although, culture can also influence what is perceived as beautiful based on two things: different cultures provide different inputs and social interactions within cultures are different. Our environment has the capability of shaping what is perceived as beautiful because our brains like to align with those who have similar views as our own.
Social media platforms also shape our perceptions on our individual beliefs of beauty. The endless string of images is tailored not only by what we choose to see but also things that are put onto our screens by companies that mainstream societal values. In the article, “The malleability of beauty: perceptual adaptation,” Mayra B.C. Maymore MD et al. discuss the effects of living in a “selfie-culture.” In today’s society, moderate symmetry, balance, and complexity are indeed hallmarks of the American beauty standard and are seen in the pictures repeated in our Instagram feeds and personal body expectations. One of Grzywacz’s main research conclusions was “aesthetic values are organized and polarized across society,” which parallels with the overwhelming presence of a beauty standard that plays a role in what makeup or muscles look the best in a social media post and has the power to change without a moment’s notice. Trends, for example, present new standards but are only around for short periods of time and separate those who follow such trends and those that do not. Society is polarized in assertive aspects such as politics, religion, and race but is also assertive in nuanced facets as well, such as facial alterations and how high someone holds their head around others.
In conclusion, the debate about whether beauty is objective and possessed by something or subjective and changes with each look has remained a constant part of society and most likely will not be changing anytime in the future. Neuroanatomy, cultures, societies, and historical time periods have been referenced and the consensus remains that perception is able to determine whether something is beautiful. A flaw that is prominent in this consensus is that people believe they are the end all be all when it comes to their surroundings even though those surroundings have been there for the past thousands of years and will continue to be there when we are all gone. A question I want to leave you with is if something is perceived as beautiful then deemed as not, by the same individual, was it ever beautiful or does it not stop being so because it was not the thing that changed?
References
Grzywacz, Norberto. “How the Brain Causes Social Polarization: The Example of Aesthetic Values.” Zoom, Loyola University Chicago, February 14th, 2023.
Maymone, Mayra B. C. “The Malleability of Beauty: Perceptual Adaptation.” Clinics in Dermatology., vol. 37, no. 5, 2019, pp. 592–96.
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