Summary Of An Argument About Beauty By Susan Sontag

This essay will summarize Susan Sontag’s ideas concerning how beauty is seen in today’s modern culture and the consequences that these views have toward women, by using Susan Sontag’s vivid examples and definitions found in both “A Woman’s Beauty: Put-Down or Power Source” and “An Argument About Beauty”. Next, I will argue in support of most of her key points; however, I will also argue against some of the points presented in the essay. For example, I agree with her assertion that in todays modern culture women’s beauty is seen as parts and not as a whole and the effects of this distorted perspective. However, I disagree with her on how she believes that things will get better and how she blames Christianity for fostering one of the distorted perspectives of women’s beauty. Susan Sontag brings about a lot of key points that we as Christians should understand so as to bring about a better attitude and view towards women and beauty. Modern-day conceptions of …show more content…
In Christianity, a woman’s beauty is determined by her inner virtue. Sontag finds this Christian viewpoint imbalanced and faults Christianity for it. However, Sontag latter contradicts herself in her 2005 essay “An Argument About Beauty” by stating that “The strongest, most successful move against beauty was in the arts”. Is Christianity or the arts to be blamed for the distortion of women’s beauty? Unlike the way that Sontag views beauty, I, as a Christian, believe that we should look at the inside of a person, as stated in 1 Samuel 16:7: “Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart” (KJV). Being able to understand this as Christians will help our attitude and view towards other non-believers and other