Aphrodite: Antique Beauty that Dazzles
The Greek phrase καλὸς κἀγαθός, or kalos kagathos, is a combination of the adjectives beautiful and good. It was a politically meaningful way to suggest that a handsome person had an ethical or excellent character. The Greeks followed Aphrodite’s legend and used it to explain the world around them. She was important to the Greeks and her myths are still relevant today. Aphrodite is the epitome of how beauty blinds people.
Ancient Greek religion was a set of beliefs and rituals centered around myths that the Greeks used to explain the world around them. One of the many gods and goddesses in this polytheistic faith is Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. She was married to Hephaestus. Aphrodite had affairs with Ares and other gods and mortals. Her disloyal actions were accepted--or at least not frowned upon--because she was worshipped, especially for her good looks, and Hephaestus was deemed ugly. The Greeks applied rules of beauty to their everyday lives. Life was good for attractive men and women back then. And for the people that naturally weren’t, they might spend hours a day in the gym or blanch themselves with white lead makeup.
Not only did beauty just influence the Greeks, but it was also important to the religious aspects as well. It was believed that one’s beauty was a gift from the gods. A man’s chiseled face was viewed as a blessing and direct proof of his perfect personality. “Beauty had a purpose; it was an active, independent reality, not a nebulous quality that only came into being once it was discerned. Beauty was a psycho-physical parcel that had as much to do with character and divine favor as chest size.” As the saying goes, beauty is only skin deep. Now it is known that one's physical appearance is determined by DNA from one’s parents. A person’s looks is a genetic hit or miss and is not a guide to the character at all.
Today, some of the same problems involving beauty in society are still relevant. While the definition or standards of beauty might be more inclusive than they used to be, one can still clearly see that pretty people have an upper hand on non-pretty people--like when Aphrodite was not judged for her wrongdoings. Pretty privilege can help with getting jobs, being popular, and many other advantages. Social media and marketing/advertising are partially to blame for this. They show us impossible ideals that are photoshopped and fake. Then, unsurprisingly, people want to be like what they’re seeing every day and may turn to unhealthy ways to achieve it--or not--and fuel a toxic obsession. Beauty is still strongly admired and sought after. These events can be compared to the competitive beauty contests that Greeks had. There was even a particular contest in honor of Aphrodite where women were judged on their bottoms. This aesthetic creates the importance of beauty in our minds.
Aphrodite was the perfect embodiment of how beauty blinds people. The Greeks valued appearance just as much as inner qualities. Aphrodite partially formed the importance of attractiveness to them and her tales still hold true today. Always remember what Kahlil Gibran once said, “Beauty is not in the face; beauty is a light in the heart.”
