Rhetorical Theory and Practice

Commonplace: "You Always Admire What You Really Don't Understand"

There are a great many things that arouse admiration in this world of ours. Some of these things such as a creation of nature, a work of breathtaking art, scientific breakthroughs that benefit human kind, and acts of bravery are, without doubt, worthy of the admiration and the sentiment that they inspire. Unfortunately, however, human beings also fruitlessly admire a great many more things that are illusory in nature and, therefore, not really worthy of respect. Take, for instance, the human desire to be good looking, rich, successful and powerful. These qualities seem desirable purely because people who possess these attributes appear to be better off in life. But, are they really? Or, do these qualities give rise to admiration only because we don't really understand what being beautiful, wealthy, successful or powerful entails?

Perhaps, it is precisely the recognition that we admire what we really don't understand that led Alexander Pope to say, "Yet, let not each gay turn thy rapture move; for fools admire, but men of sense approve." (Part II, 190) In fact, Pope's words begin to assume real meaning if one considers that works of fiction as well as non-fiction abound with stories of the unhappiness and even tragedy that often results from the foolish admiration of beauty without substance. Consider, for example, the wars and conspiracies that were provoked by the beauty of Cleopatra and Helen of Troy. Consider also the fact that people who enter relationships blinded by a person's beauty usually end up feeling unhappy and unfulfilled, once the realization dawns that beauty can be just skin deep.

The possession of beauty, wealth and power can also prove to be an immense burden. Indeed, this fact is highly evident in the biographies of several rich, powerful and beautiful people, which testify to the unwanted, often insincere attention that these qualities attract. Thus, it is a paradox that such people actually, at times, wish away the very qualities for which they are admired, thereby lending credence to the saying that the grass is always greener on the other side.

Similarly, the confident and assured poise of wealthy, successful and powerful people can be highly deceptive since it is often just a mask that is worn to live up to a real or perceived self-image. Remove the mask and what will be revealed are probably layers and layers of insecurity and cynicism, wrought by years of living with being sought after for all the external trappings of beauty, wealth or success. It is, therefore, ironic that the people we admire for being beautiful, successful or powerful are sometimes very lonely people who are afraid to trust in the fact that they can be liked or loved for the person they really are.