The Way In Which Beauty Is Perceived by Owen Welsh

You've heard it all before, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" or "everyone has different tastes" or "why are you asking me all these questions." Most people just take these to mean that people's ideas of beauty differ from other's preferences, but I propose that this saying stems from the idea of Siren's Song. The Siren's Song is in essence a song in which the Siren convince the listener, usually a sailor, that they're unique and a hero to the Siren and thus convinces the listener to go and try to find them, drowning in the process. Now I like being called a hero as much as the next guy, but I don't think I'd be willing to dive into the ocean for someone I can't even see, so I must imagine that the Sirens were in full view of the sailors. These sailors were all ruffians and scoundrels, but everyone varies in taste about looks so I doubt that one single Siren would be able to woo over many men, unless that Siren's appearance changed in accordance with the viewers tastes.

So if the Siren does change her looks to be more appealing doesn't that mean her beauty is in the eye of the beholder? But what is beauty in it's most raw form? Going off of the Greek idea, Aphrodite would be the most beautiful person in existence, and Paris of Troy confirms that by choosing her as the most beautiful person. But if you take people's personal tastes into account does that mean Aphrodite also shifted looks much like the Siren's, or did she stay in a form that every single person found universally appealing? I would guess that since she is a deity after all, that she appears to be the same to each person, but everyone can agree that her form is beautiful even if they aren't attracted to it.

Now it comes to decision time, is there a universally appealing form or does taste always factor in, I would say that there must be someone that is recognizable as the most beautiful but that does not mean every person is attracted to her/him. Perhaps that's what the Greeks thought about Aphrodite, that she is by far the most beautiful but not the most appealing to someone's particular tastes. But then a conundrum comes up, if a Siren disguises herself to look amazing, does that not mean what Aphrodite may have done by changing her form makes her as low as mere monster? Imagine a god being reduced to using the tactics of a mere monster, just to sway some man over to her side, using the same tricks as a succubus. I doubt that Aphrodite would ever be able to face the other Gods if she did that for every single one of her romantic endeavors, so it's more likely that she retains the same appearance for the most part. While I believe each person has their own opinion on how the perfect person would look, I do believe that their probably is someone out there that I could justifiably say is more beautiful than anyone else in the world.

An Artist's rendition of a Siren.