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What is beauty?

Man has mulled this over for centuries. Are we beautiful? Many of us struggle with this question. It can be a difficult one to answer. It catches us unexpectedly because though we may go through the motions of grooming ourselves each day, we struggle with how we perceive ourselves and how we would like others to see us. Our views are influenced by society, the media and our environment.

For me, beauty is a journey, an evolution. There are days I feel ugly, inadequate and want to change certain aspects of myself. There are days when all is as it should be and I am happy. I feel most beautiful around the people I love and care about. At the moment, I can’t say that I am beautiful. But what I can say is that with every person I meet, every trial I encounter, and every experience I learn from, I am becoming more beautiful.

JUDY

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This book was inspired by the beauty yet to be revealed in us. I photographed people I came across who were willing to answer the question, “Are you beautiful?”

Judy Ko :: School of Design :: Carnegie Mellon University :: Spring 2003

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KRISTIE

I think my definition of beauty changes everyday. As a female, society places a lot of value on whether we are beautiful or not, but I’ve learned that those who are most pleased with themselves and confident are the ones that feel most beautiful. I haven’t gotten to that point yet, but everyday I think I am learning to like myself more and whether I’m labelled as beautiful or not, I’m still just as cool as I want to be.

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JENNY

I would like to think that I’m beautiful because it’s what’s on the inside that counts! Thank God.

:)

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BRUCE

No. I am, personality wise. I try to follow the golden rule, do unto others as you would have others do to you. I guess I was good-looking in my lifetime.

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DAVID

I’m not the right person to answer that question. I’m a photographer and no one, not even the very good-looking people think that they are beautiful. I know everything in God’s creation is beautiful and perfect, but most times it’s difficult to recognize that beauty in myself.

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VENITA

Of course. Always. It’s inside out, it’s a religious thing. It comes from the inside.

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JOSIAH

Yes, I am beautiful. Beauty is truth and truth beauty. To me someone or something is beautiful when the physical form represents the ideas contained within the person or object. I have chosen a look through clothes, hair and accessories to represent my ideals accurately and to me that is beauty.

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DREA

It’s such a hard question. I guess I would say yes. I’m happy with who I am so I would say I’m beautiful. Beauty has its flaws. I don’t think I’m perfect. It’s very hard to answer this question without coming off as stuck up.

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JAMIE

I’m not sure I’m really beautiful. People have told me I am (or at least appear to be.) Often, it is hard for me to believe them. I think by the time I’m as old as my parents I will be able to decide whether or not I am or was beautiful.

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TOM

I am beautiful because I am a creation of the eternal, unfathomable, incomparable, all-encompassing God.

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SAMANTHA

Physically, I think I have beautiful eyes and a warm smile, but I think inner beauty is much more important, namely kindness, compassion and love.

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CHIAMING

Yes, I would like to believe so. I perceive beauty as a manifestation of constant pursuit of self-improvement and confidence. A person is beautiful as long as he or she possesses the aforementioned qualities, and expresses him/herself accordingly.

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FRIEDA

No, I’m not beautiful. I’m cute, and kind. I’m caring, I’m helpful. All these together might make me beautiful to others. Today, beauty from the outside goes a long way in this world, unfortunately. To me, beauty comes from within and it radiates outward by one’s cheerfulness and personality. Beauty is in the smile.

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HARPER

Of course I’m beautiful. Everybody’s beautiful. There’s art in the human form. People are beautiful in different ways. Beauty is a hard thing to pin down. Actually, some people are assholes. They’re just not beautiful. I like beautiful people.

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MORGAN

I am beautiful because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

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MELISSA

Everyone has beautiful qualities about them. I think that’s one of our purposes in life: to learn how to find something beautiful about every single person we meet.

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LYDIA

Yes, because my friends say it.

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JEFF

I don’t know. I don’t know if I can say that. I would say that I’m nice. I’m a good person.

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JESSE

I see beauty as a quality closely associated with being natural. While I do not say that youth is the only beautiful thing, I think we often typify or exemplify beauty as a youthful quality because of how “untampered” youths are. Thus, when we see beauty in youth, we see beauty in a human who has not been scarred or “damaged” by age, accident or experience.

This brings me to how I conceptualize beauty across ages. I find myself beautiful despite certain things. In my mind, there are parts of me that I don’t like or know to be unattractive to most people, myself included. Yet, there are still days I find myself beautiful. Why? I think that I am able to look past these certain aspects and despite their presence, still find myself attractive.

There are still others, though, who pride themselves in finding themselves wholly beautiful. Many embrace their different features, even ones that might not be attractive to others, as parts that undeniably make up the whole. In this way, many people come to find beauty even in scars, wounds and abnormalities. As most will say and firmly believe, myself included, inner beauty is of utmost importance, and this inner

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L?beauty is what allows self-acceptance, regardless of outer beauty. Possibly, that is why people who are answering this question are confident in saying that they are beautiful. Most people, when asked this, would feel very self-conscious...yet inner beauty and acceptance enables each of us to rightfully give our own answer.

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ALYSSA

Sure. Good genes?

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BRANDON

Yes. Cause I make people smile and I’m happy with the way I look.

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LIZ

I do think I’m beautiful, even though sometimes I think I look fat or am having an ugly day. I think beauty is really in one’s face. Truly beautiful people don’t need makeup but everything on them still looks nice. I guess even if I was ugly I would think I was pretty. And my mom always told me a face without freckles in like a night without stars.

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ROB

No. Mustard is way more beautiful than I am. So until I turn into mustard or at least have it running through my body I won’t be beautiful, but damn, am I sexy. I sure have a cute butt. Maybe that makes me beautiful.

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JASMINE

No. I don’t think I’m beautiful because of many aspects. In terms of physical qualities, I think I am average compared to others. As a person, I can be very dynamic and boring at the same time. So until I am completely satisfied with myself as whole, I would not perceive myself to be beautiful.

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ELI

I am beautiful. I like to think of beautiful thoughts. I use poetry and drawing and computers to express myself. I am in repose.

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ROBIN

I do believe that I’m beautiful. I’m not always clear on whether or not others would agree with me based solely of a judgement of my appearance, but to me beauty is something that develops over time. As you know someone, their beauty becomes more and more apparent to you. There are ideas of aesthetic beauty that our culture enforces from the outside but I’m more concerned with a beauty that reveals itself from the inside.

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JESSE

I am beautiful because I have dimples...and the ladies love the dimples.

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BECKY

I think I have the potential to be beautiful, but I’m not quite there yet.

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BELINDA

Yes! I am beautiful because when I wake up in the morning I feel confident, and confidence is beauty. And whenever I am low on confidence I have wonderful and beautiful friends that make me feel beautiful.

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GRETE

Well...a beautiful person or beautiful looking? I think I am a beautiful person (everybody has the potential to be a beautiful person,) but as for beautiful looking, I’m not gorgeous—no, but I’m not hurting anyone’s eyes.

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MAX

I am a beautiful person. Beauty is my name. Beauty is whatever you want it to be.

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CATHY

People who are the most important people in my life tell me I’m beautiful and I try hard to believe that. I don’t conform to the standard version of beauty. I have a hard time being able to say, “Yes, I am beautiful.” I do feel that there is a beauty within me. It’s a challenging question, I would think, especially for women.

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CARIN

I am beautiful because I don’t know anyone who looks like me and I like that.

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OSAMA

Beauty. Is beauty a value? In my case it is. I suppose that is simply because beauty is something I value so much. I don’t mean the, “Oh look at that girl, she’s gorgeous...” type of beauty, but I mean the beauty you see when you look at the stars on a clear night, or maybe the look of joy on someone’s face when they are happy. That is true beauty. To look at something and see it for more than it really is.

When you look at someone, what do you see? The outer appearance, the formed mask made for the public eye? Or are you looking beyond that, into the part where no one else dares to look, the piece of that person that can either make you laugh or cry. When you judge someone, you’re cheating yourself out of the infinite amount of beauty in the world. You are in control of that. Looking at people, interacting with people and living with people. My eyes have begun to seek the person within, not the outer shell. I want to see beauty undefined. I want to know you, and I mean YOU.

So the answer to the question back again is, yes and no depending on how the person in front of me sees me. How do you see me?

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