Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Posted by Gary Martin on September 03, 2001

In Reply to: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. posted by William Karl Thomas on September 03, 2001

: You attribute the sentiment expressed in a different manner to Shakespear,
: but Margaret Wolfe Hungerford penned the line "beauty is in the eye of the beholder"
: in her 1878 novel titled Molly Bawn. My research for an article with that title found
: this to be the earliest source of that exact phrase in the form in which it is used in
: contemporary language. Without questioning the wealth of expression Shakespear
: has provided for all English speaking people worldwide, as an international resrouce
: you cannot afford to be "Anglo-centric." Please regard my comments as a constructive
: effort and accept my sincere thanks for providing an invaluable service.

I can't find a copy of Molly Bawn but most references quote her line as 'Beauty is altogether in the eye of the beholder'.

No Anglo-centrism here, although Hungerford was Irish and living before the Irish partition so doesn't that make her British?

Gary