Feeling vs. Beauty: A Dancer’s Choice

In tango, which matters more—movement or feeling? Movement dazzles with impression, creativity, complexity, and beauty. Feeling, on the other hand, offers intimacy, comfort, resonance, and emotional connection. Dancers often lean toward one or the other. Aesthetic-minded dancers may sacrifice feeling for appearance, while feeling-oriented dancers do the opposite.

Ideally, of course, the two should be in harmony. As one master said, “Whatever is comfortable should also be beautiful, and whatever is beautiful should also be comfortable.” Yet most dancers, before reaching that level, must choose between them. Mencius once wrote, “Fish—I desire it; bear’s paw—I also desire it. If I cannot have both, I will give up the fish and take the bear’s paw.” When unable to balance movement and feeling, most dancers sacrifice what they consider secondary in favor of what they value more. That is why we often see dancers perform difficult movements even at the expense of their partner’s comfort.

That, however, is not my choice. Personally, if one movement could leave a deep impression but make my partner uncomfortable, while another would offer comfort but leave no impression, I would choose the latter. For me, feeling outweighs movement. The purpose of social tango, in my view, is not to please an audience but to please one’s partner.

Observe the milongueros and you’ll see this philosophy in action. Unlike stage performers, the milongueros do not dance with large, showy gestures at the milonga. They dance with small, simple, comfortable steps. What they emphasize is musicality, emotional connection, and inner feeling. This does not mean they disregard beauty; rather, they value intimacy and appropriateness over display.

Do social dancers need to pursue beauty? Certainly. Within the bounds of their partner’s comfort, mature dancers continually explore and refine their sense of beauty. But they will not sacrifice feeling to achieve it. Their goal is higher: the perfect unity of beauty and feeling—with feeling carrying the greater weight.

This principle extends beyond dance. In life, too, mature people understand that inner qualities matter more than outward appearance. Most desire both, but when forced to choose, the wise choose character—only the foolish choose looks.