Philosophy of the Arts

Perception

Masks and Expectations

Put on a mask and you should find that your expectations will change. You’ll typically expect others to look for clues about who you are, and, when none are found, a hesitancy to communicate with you, perhaps only on instrumental grounds. Did you just tell you’d go shopping for them, then they would typically want to assess whether indeed you might, and what, then, they’d want you to buy for them.
But this is a silly exercise, as your voice will still betray your trustworthiness, as will your boily posture–though never as good or as detailed as your face might, at least for visual perceivers. Visually impaired people would get a lot from these other clues, and they would be hard pressed to find out whether you are wearing a mask or not.
Putting on cosmetic surgery is done for the sake of the seeing though–so the silly exercise remains.

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