I’m not sure what you’re driving at with your comment. That the entire structure of aesthetic composition doesn’t actually exist? Or that the “Rules” designation is overblown?
We could call it “‘Guideline generally accepted as being aesthetically pleasing to the majority of people’ of Thirds” but that doesn’t quite roll off the tongue as well.
Most peoples’ photos would be vastly improved if they considered some (any!) of the composition elements available before they point and shoot. I’ve rarely ever seen a photo that really caught my eye that was composed by accident.
