Beauty and Shallowness
The question henceforth is as follows: Is it shallow to like that which is beautiful? I think not, but recently someone brought an interesting argument to my attention. An example of this argument involves fashion and designer clothing.
Now the point of high fashion is to have clothes that are aesthetically pleasing. Famous designers spend a great deal of time and money designing a beautiful article of clothing in much the same way a painter spends a great deal of time and money creating a beautiful painting. I think that’s straightforward enough.
Yet, often people consider those who like designer clothes and such to be shallow and/or materialistic. The reasoning here is that these people only buy this expensive clothing for external purposes: They want to look beautiful. If they wear beautiful clothing, they believe that this is a step towards reaching that end.
This can be first seen as materialistic because they are spending (often times) hundreds upon hundreds of dollars on clothing for the sake of appearances. For example, I own a Versace tie that cost something like $115. Most nice ties which are other brands one can get for $40 or less. Hence, I might be seen as materialistic because I have this expensive taste.
This can also be seen as shallow because the person is going through great lengths to improve his/her appearance and/or to impress others. In the case above, the great length was spending $115 on a tie (it was a gift, for the record!). To do this sort of thing in order to look better and/or impress others is surely shallow.
I’m not so sure. If I were to buy a Monet for my living room for $2 million, would I be shallow and/or materialistic as a result? I hardly think so, and I believe that most people would hardly think so. Above, you might recall, I commented that the fashion designer is completely analogous to the painter. In each situation a piece of art, be it painting or tie, is purchased to be exhibited, on your wall or on your person.
Something has to give: Either in both these situations people are acting materialistically and/or with shallowness or in neither situation they are acting in this manner. I think the answer lies in intent.
With the painting example, if the person really does not care for art at all, but thinks that if s/he believes that having a Monet in the living room will make people think more highly of him/her, then surely this is shallow. Moreover, if s/he does not like art, but likes expensive things, and Monets are expensive, so s/he buys one, then this person is acting materialistically. On the other hand, if this person has a passion for art, and it has been his/her life dream to one day acquire a Monet for his/her living room to admire it whenever in the room, then this is neither shallow nor materialistic. This last situation is the one where the person simply loves art in the intellectual and deep sense.
This can all be applied to clothing. If the intent in buying expensive clothing is to impress others and/or spend as much money as possible, then the person is being shallow or materialistic, respectively. Instead, if the person really has a passion for high fashion, and has always dreamed of owning a Versace suit, then buying one is admirable in the sense described above. In this case it is about the art, not the object.
As I said, it is all about intent. One is not necessarily shallow if s/he loves beauty, but only if s/he desires beauty for the sake of a shallow end. I know that’s ambiguous; it’s that way purposefully, because I am not comfortable making a stronger statement at this time. In fact, I think that it is perfectly natural for people to desire that which is beautiful; I actually believe it is rational.
Here comes a stronger claim: A person is acting admirably when s/he values beauty for its own sake. If s/he values beauty for the sake of appearances or some other reason, then s/he is acting with shallowness. This claim has some interesting consequences depending on whether one accepts an objective or subjective account of beauty, but I will leave those to be discussed another time, or for you to think about yourself.