Is beauty a real property of objects?

Is beauty a real property of objects, or is it simply “in the eye of the beholder”?

            As a property, beauty is not one that is inherent in the physical world, but it is rather an evaluation done in the mind. That being said, beauty does require some element of the physical in order to be recognized. Anything can only be properly predicated as beautiful if it is in fact a physical presence. For example, a beautiful sunset requires the actual witnessing of the event; a beautiful painting requires the viewer to be in fact viewing the work in order to understand it; or a beautiful piece of music requires someone to hear the piece in question. However, while beauty requires that there is some sort of physical manifestation, this does not mean that it is an inherent or real property of objects in themselves. Beauty only comes about in the perception of the object, similar to how we perceive colors or textures through the senses. However, beauty requires the added dimension of an intellectual step (or at least a weak one). What is beautiful, while it is generally societally agreed upon, is generally open to a matter of personal taste. Perhaps, what makes beauty this way is the social milieu in which it is debated. We are all told that certain things, like sunsets or tropical beaches, or certain works of art, like Michelangelo’s “David,” are beautiful. Thus, what we perceive as physically pleasing to the senses, whether it be sounds or sights, is tempered by the social understanding, similar to the way that our perceptions of the world are shaped by language. However, because each of us has a unique history of interacting with the world, each person has a varying interpretation of their world. On a wider scale, we can look at differences across cultures. In Burma, the culture of the Kayan Lahwi people holds that women with long necks are beautiful, and so they artificially elongate their necks by adding brass rings around their necks. As we can easily tell, western culture does not have this same sort of standard of beauty. Thus, there is some element of the identification of beauty that does not rest in the physical matter, whether in human bodies, nature, or artwork, but rather in the consciousness of the viewer. And these differences are not limited to cultural differences, can even be seen in differing preferences in individuals. For example, I find that the “Supper’s Ready” suite by Genesis is a beautiful piece of music, with lots of interesting twists and turns and some memorable motifs. However, I know several friends whom I have forced to listen to the track who complained all the way through about what they were listening to and how it was not good (or even listenable). We all listened to the same collection of sounds, and yet I happen to find it pleasing while the others do not. Clearly, there is some element of beauty that goes beyond the physical and is determined in the mind of the perceiver.