We all know that today men and women have equal opportunities in some way or the other. But, the author unsure about what people think when the word ‘beautiful’ is used for men. Maybe it’s because the word ‘handsome’ is usually paired with men to compliment them, and beauty is always associated with the presence of a woman as the recipient.
But have you ever thought about what beauty really means? Are you curious that beauty can be used with men in any sentence? Do men prefer to use the word ‘handsome’ instead of the word ‘beautiful’?
Let me give you an explanation of beauty as known from the theories of some experts.
According to Plato, beauty is not only related to nature or art. Beauty is the object of goodness.
Then, there is also the definition of beauty according to Aristotle, which means that beauty is something that needs to be measured.
Lastly, according to Socrates, he defines beauty as the things that are created by beauty itself.
Then what is the definition of beautiful itself according to the author?
Beautiful is a word to define beauty or something good, in terms of appearance, behaviour, atmosphere, time, and so on. We usually define a place with a good view, as a place that has beauty and then we will also praise the place with the word ‘beautiful’. But have you ever heard a man or a boy being complimented with the word ‘beautiful’ instead of using the word ‘handsome’?
The definition of beautiful is actually beautiful or attractive, therefore the word ‘beautiful’ itself should not be specific to one creature or form. However, as far as the eye and history can see, we have never heard of men on this earth being praised with the word ‘beautiful’ to describe their overall attractive selves.
In the past, in the phrases of some foreign languages, people often used the word ‘beautiful’ only to define something that exists in a man’s physique. Now, on the other hand, foreigners often use the word ‘beautiful’ to praise a man who they find attractive.
So unlike in Indonesia, the majority of people will be confused when they find a man being praised using the word ‘beautiful’. Even in the KBBI (Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia), the word ‘cantik’ has several definitions of which women or women are the owners. This of course reinforces our society’s opinion that ‘beautiful’ is indeed for women or women only.
In fact, men in Indonesia also prefer to be praised with the word ‘handsome’ or ‘handsome’ rather than the word ‘beautiful’ or ‘sweet’. This shows that our society is still not open to the use of language that should not be specific to any individual or gender.
This can also be proven through an article that the author has read:
So, what do you think after reading some of the opinions above? Is it true that the word ‘beautiful’ should only be used or carried by women? Or after reading this article, are you open to the idea that men can and should also be complimented with the word ‘beautiful’?
Whatever your opinion, there is nothing wrong with using the word ‘beautiful’ to compliment men as well. Because regardless of the specifics in our country, the language we use in our daily lives has never been gendered.
It’s not like out there which is then associated with opinions leading if the ‘beautiful’ compliment to men is for men who are deviating from their nature. The two things are clearly different, friends. Hopefully in the future we will understand and be more open that both men and women can use the word ‘beautiful’ to compliment each other, because it is a language not clothing.