“Beauty is natures way of acting at a distance”, that is a quote from the video around the 6:30 mark and this is what stuck out to me. Beauty is a defense mechanism that nature uses to ensure that reproduction happens and that a species continues on. It happens for all animals big or small. The example of the peacock was used in the video and that is a very good example because the tail feathers may act as some sort of defense mechanism toward predators, but more importantly they are used to attract the female hens. The peacock has evolved to where it knows that it needs to make a good impression in order to gain the eye of the hen. This is true in humans too. But the difference between us as humans and peacocks is that for peacocks only the male has changed to try and catch the eye of the hen, us as humans have adapted to where both males and females use beauty as a way to attract the other sex. Women put on make-up or heels to impress guys, and guys work out a lot and put on a suit to impress girls, every species in the animal kingdom uses some sort of beauty to attract a mate.
This is such an interesting idea to me because of how long this idea has been around, using beauty as a defense mechanism to ensure the survival of a species. The video talked about how many hand axe blades have been found without any damage to them. He talked about how they were used as art and they liked how they looked, but i think they were more than that. I think they are to homo erectus as the pebbles are to the adelie penguins, a way to show your mate that you are the one. This is mechanism that nature has used to ensure the fate of the species and it has obviously worked. Art and beauty are not only around to be visually pleasing, but nature has developed it in order to protect species.
Great post! I, too, found this idea of beauty as a defense mechanism an interesting and unexpected description, but I also agree that it holds great truth. I especially liked Dutton’s comment that objects and people exert a “magnetizing beauty” that provides pleasure to the eye rather than to the digestive system or other benefactor. You stated, “every species in the animal kingdom uses some sort of beauty to attract a mate.” I think that most species do indeed follow this statement, but I can’t help but wonder if all necessarily do. Take, for example, species living at the bottom of the ocean that are surviving without light and whom wouldn’t be able to see physical beauty. Or, for those that are visually impaired, deciding on a mate cannot be based on physical beauty. Certainly, I am playing devil’s advocate here, and I think one could argue that there are other forms of beauty than physical beauty, but it is an interesting idea.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this post because you make some awesome points Terran. This idea of natural selection and the strongest of each species surviving has everything to do with mating. In a lot of species there are rituals where the males try to impress the females by being louder, stronger, and larger than the other males in the population. In a lot of ways, this is similar to humans where males think women will find them more attractive if they dress nice and are more impressive than other men. But, in a lot of ways our species does not follow these rituals. We, as humans, can be attracted to so many different traits about a person. The traits that make up a person are so unique and non-identical that it is amazing how people can find someone they think is their “perfect match.”
Studies recently have shown though that often times we find specific proportions and symmetry to be more beautiful than others. This also has a lot to subconsciously do with mating. For example, there is a specific body proportion that men are shown to be attracted to and often times it is women with larger hips because it appears that they will be able to carry children better than say a woman with narrower hips. I’ve always found this really interesting but question it to some extent. Do you think there is anything that is universally beautiful or is beauty really in the eye of the beholder?
This is a fantastic read! I love how the ideas are presented in such a clear and relatable way. It’s always great to come across content that sparks curiosity and adds value. Keep up the amazing work—I’ll definitely be following for more!
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