🌦️ Unit 2: Art and Craft, Lesson 1: What is Beauty?
A. Warm up activity
- Close your eyes and picture something beautiful. What did you see? Share with your friends.
- Think of a work of art you have seen (e.g., a painting, a sculpture, a photograph, an embroidered quilt) that you considered beautiful. Describe it to your group.
Beauty is easy to appreciate but difficult to define. As we look around, we discover beauty in pleasurable objects and sights—in nature, in the laughter of children, in the kindness of strangers. But when asked to define it, we run into difficulties. Does beauty have an independent, objective identity? Is it universal, or is it shaped by individual perceptions? Does it truly lie in the eye of the beholder?—we ask ourselves.
Throughout history, poets and artists have described beauty in different ways. Poets make use of words to paint images of beauty, while artists create representations of beauty using their creative faculties.
Here are two poems that explore the theme of beauty. While Lord Byron (1788-1824) finds perfect beauty in a woman he idealizes. Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) asserts that beauty is inseparable from truth. Read the poems and complete the activities that follow.
'She Walks in Beauty' by Lord Byron
She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that's best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes;
Thus mellowed to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impaired the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
Or softly lightens o'er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express,
How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.
And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!
'I Died For Beauty' by Emily Dickinson
I died for beauty, but was scarce
Adjusted in the tomb,
When one who died for truth was lain
In an adjoining room.
He questioned softly why I failed?
"For beauty," I replied.
"And I for truth - the two are one;
We brethren are," he said.
And so, as kinsmen met a-night,
We talked between the rooms,
Until the moss had reached our lips,
And covered up our names.
Necessary Words and Phrases
| Word/Phrase | Type | Meaning | Synonyms/Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| embroidered quilt | Noun Phrase | A bed covering consisting of two layers of cloth with a layer of padding between them, held together by lines of stitching, which is decorated with needlework patterns (embroidery). | Decorated blanket, needlepoint coverlet, stitched tapestry. |
| Beauty is easy to appreciate but difficult to define. | Sentence | A statement suggesting that while people intuitively recognize and enjoy beautiful things, formulating a precise, universally agreed-upon definition of beauty is challenging. | Beauty is recognizable yet elusive, or hard to pin down. |
| objective identity | Noun Phrase | A quality or characteristic that exists independently of human thought or perception; real and verifiable, not influenced by personal feelings. | Universal nature, inherent existence, external reality, independent definition. |
| individual perceptions | Noun Phrase | The way a single person interprets or understands something based on their own experiences, beliefs, or sensory input; subjective viewpoints. | Personal viewpoints, subjective interpretations, specific understanding. |
| explore | Verb | To inquire into or discuss a subject in detail; to examine a topic deeply. | Investigate, analyze, discuss, examine, consider. |
| asserts | Verb | States a fact or belief confidently and forcefully. | Declares, affirms, insists, proclaims, maintains. |
| cloudless climes | Noun Phrase | Regions or countries that have a sky completely free of clouds, suggesting clarity, purity, and brightness. | Clear environments, unclouded regions, bright skies. |
| starry skies | Noun Phrase | The night sky filled with stars, symbolizing brilliance, vastness, and natural beauty. | Starlit heavens, night expanse, celestial dome. |
| gaudy day | Noun Phrase | A day that is excessively bright, showy, or glaringly colorful in a tasteless or vulgar way. Byron contrasts this harsh light with the gentle, "mellowed" light in the woman's eyes. | Overly bright day, harsh daylight, glaring brightness. |
| raven tress | Noun Phrase | A lock or strand of hair that is deep black, like the color of a raven's feathers. | Black lock of hair, dark curl, inky strand. |
| eloquent | Adjective | Clearly expressing or indicating something. In this context, the brow/cheek expresses the woman's pure thoughts and goodness without needing words. | Expressive, articulate (figurative), revealing, suggestive. |
| tints | Noun | A shade or degree of color. Refers here to the subtle, natural color (blush) of the woman's face. | Hues, shades, colors, complexions. |
| scarce | Adverb | Hardly, barely, only just. (Here: "I was barely adjusted in the tomb"). | Rarely, seldom, not quite, almost not. |
| tomb | Noun | A large vault, chamber, or grave for the dead. | Burial place, grave, mausoleum, burial vault. |
| lain | Verb (Past Participle) | Past participle of 'lie' (meaning to recline or rest). Here, it means to be placed in a resting position after death. | Rested, situated, placed, put (in the grave). |
| adjoining room | Noun Phrase | A room that is connected to or shares a wall with another room. | Adjacent chamber, connected space, next-door compartment. |
| kinsmen | Noun | A person who is one of a person's blood relations; relatives. (Figuratively, the two speakers view each other as kindred spirits). | Relatives, kindred, family members, fellow spirits. |
1. Multiple Choice Questions
- According to the introductory text, what is the central paradox concerning beauty?
- It is defined by the artist but appreciated by the common person.
- It is an objective identity but is often mistaken for individual perception.
- It is easy to recognize and enjoy but challenging to define.
- It is found in nature but absent in human civilization.
- The initial discussion about defining beauty raises a conflict between which two concepts?
- Whether it is temporary or permanent.
- Objective identity and individual perceptions.
- The creative faculties of artists and the words used by poets.
- Whether it is an appreciation of form or of function.
- The passage distinguishes the role of poets from artists in representing beauty by stating that poets use:
- Creative faculties to create representations, while artists use words to paint images.
- Words to paint images, while artists use their creative faculties to create representations.
- Subjective feelings, while artists seek an objective identity.
- Logic to define it, while artists use emotion to portray it.
- Based on the introductory text, which statement best summarizes Emily Dickinson's perspective on beauty in her poem?
- She believes beauty is solely a matter of individual perception.
- She asserts that beauty is inseparable from truth.
- She finds perfect beauty in a woman she idealizes.
- She explores the theme through an objective identity.
- In Lord Byron's 'She Walks in Beauty,' what does the contrast between the woman's beauty and the light that "heaven to gaudy day denies" suggest?
- Her beauty is a gentle, harmonious light, superior to the day's crude brightness.
- Her beauty is fleeting and will vanish when the sun rises.
- Her beauty is simple and unadorned, lacking any tints or glow.
- Her beauty is harsh and overwhelming, like a bright day.
- According to the second and third stanzas of Byron's poem, what ultimately validates the woman's external beauty?
- The striking contrast of dark and bright in her appearance.
- The cloudless climes and starry skies of the night.
- The innocence of her heart and goodness of her character.
- The nameless grace which waves in every raven tress.
- In Emily Dickinson's 'I Died For Beauty,' what is the primary realization shared between the two speakers who are lain in adjoining rooms?
- That Beauty and Truth are fundamentally one and the same.
- That the moss will eventually cover all names and memory is temporary.
- That their causes of death were completely different and unrelatable.
- That they were kinsmen from the same family.