Short Reads Social #15: Will we ever escape from 'beauty'?
About the event
Short-Read Socials are back! Come meet with like-minded and unlikeminded people to talk about the topic of the month. This time, we're thinking about beauty standards and looksmaxxing. *Who gets to decide who are what is considered 'beautiful'? Is 'looksmaxxing' and the pursuit of beauty self-empowerment or self-harm? Is attractiveness a privilege?* --- ***Note: this event and future events (at least until 2027) will be on second and last Wednesdays! we won't be there on Tuesday:( --- How does it work?
• The event is casual. You can talk to anyone there with or without our prompt sheets, either about the month's topic or about whatever you want. • Open philosophical discussion, including for controversial topics, is welcome but be respectful. Every has had different experiences so aim to have good-faith discussions:) • If you've read/watched/heard anything related to the topic of the month, feel free to bring it in! Not necessarily physically, but you can if you want... • If not, here are some thought-provoking reads to start you off (read as many or as few as you want): • On lookism • [If Pretty is a Privilege, Ugly is a Curse](https://youtu.be/FnACzwV7Mwc) (19:16 to 1:18:39) • [Lookism as Epistemic Injustice](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/02691728.2022.2076629?needAccess=true) • On looksmaxxing • [How Many Bones Would You Break to Get Laid?](https://www.thecut.com/2019/05/incel-plastic-surgery.html) • [Looksmaxxing and the Rise of Male-to-Male Transsexuals](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uox4OMC50-4&t=2033s) • On the beauty industry • [The New Face](https://torontolife.com/deep-dives/the-new-face-how-unnatural-beauty-standards-became-a-multi-billion-dollar-medical-industry/) • [The Age of Instagram Face](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/decade-in-review/the-age-of-instagram-face) (bypassed paywall version [here](https://www.removepaywall.com/search?url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/decade-in-review/the-age-of-instagram-face)) • Feel free to post other recommendations (blogs, movies, tv episodes, video essays, etc.) in the comments!
--- Finally, Short Read Socials have a 'pay what you can' policy. They'll always be free to attend--but if you've been having a good time with us and want to pass along a couple of bucks to help cover Meetup platform costs for future events, there is a contribution bucket on the table that night and a [Paypal](https://paypal.me/bookclubforhumans?country.x=CA&locale.x=en_US) link:)
