Eye of the Beholder

Hardships, setbacks, and advantages have always been and always will be a part of life. Throughout every walk of life: the beautiful to the ugly, the rich to the poor, and the highly intelligent to the mediocre, people always encounter some type of problem. They can be trivial, significant, or even life changing; however problems take different meanings to different people. In the drama “Beauty,” by Jane Martin, the author’s main point is that people continually look at what they perceive their life is lacking rather than appreciate what they do have in their life.

In Martin’s drama she uses two characters to portray this point. One of the characters is named Carla, who is beautiful and a model. The other character is Bethany. She is pretty, a public accountant, and has also published short stories. The two women are envious of the attributes that they deem positive or desirable in each other. Martin uses the idea of outward beauty to bring her point to light. The lack of being outwardly beautiful makes Bethany feel her life is of a lesser of quality in comparison to Carla. In the play dialogue takes place between Bethany and Carla, and Bethany maintains “…I know what I want. In my guts. Yes. Underneath my entire bitch of a life is this unspoken, ferocious, all-consuming urge…” (964). She goes on to tell Carla “I want to be like you.” (964). Carla tries to explain that beauty is really not as great as Bethany perceives it to be. Bethany responds “But it’s what everybody wants” (965). Emphasis on outward beauty is a trait that is common in today’s society. It could possibly even be one of the most coveted, but it truly should not change people’s life in such a way that they feel it is of a lesser of quality. Man...

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...robing from Bethany, Carla responds “Different problems” (966).

People continually look at what they perceive their life as lacking rather than appreciate what they do have in their life. People often fail to take into consideration when viewing another’s life the challenges, struggles, and negative aspects the person had to face to achieve their status. The only time it is appropriate for people to focus on the negative in their life is in order for positive change to take place. This will enable them to be able to learn and grow as a person from it. If people would focus more on the positive points in their life they may find that their life more satisfying.

Works Cited

Martin, Jane. “Beauty.” Backpack Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. 4th ed. New York: Longman, 2012. 961-966. Print.