#38 - Addicted to Beauty

An episode of the Safety Last podcast, hosted by Stanley Ching, titled "#38 - Addicted to Beauty" was published on July 1, 2023 and runs 82 minutes.

July 1, 2023 ·82m · Safety Last

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Summary

What we consider normal seems so obvious that sometimes the possibility of change seems impossible and unlikely. Every society that has ever existed has clearly preferred thinner bodies, right? That’s just an unchanging law of nature, right? Wrong. Sometimes, when we’re trying to understand society, it’s important to step away from what learnt cultural assumptions that seem so obvious. Instead, view society in the same way that an alien would view it, with eyes unclouded by cultural biases. Well, in that case, I think it’s safe to say that humans spend an absurd amount of time on beauty, whether it’s picking out the right suit for a formal, getting a manicure, selecting the shiniest diamond for a wedding ring, spending an unhealthy amount of time deciding if you should change your hairstyle. The truth is, for a vast majority of people on this earth, we are all hopelessly vain and this desire to be beautiful is the cause for a lot of our pain. Companies exploit this insecurity, media elevates those who fit our beauty standards, and even worse, we assign labels of morality like goodness and honesty to people whom we find beauty. In this episode, I bring on Charlotte, a good friend whom I’ve discussed many of these topics with before, but finally deciding to record and broadcast our words in the hopes that you’ll learn something from this. So, have a think about beauty, beyond the shallow conception of what looks good and bad, such labels are subjective and are slaves to our environment. Instead, think of beauty as an unrestrained force that beats at the very core of society. An unrestrained force that governs every action we take in our lives. TIME STAMP: (6:35) - Wearing make up in year 8 (11:40) - A man-eating auntie (16:35) - Obsession with pale skin (24:10) - Is beauty objective or subjective? (32:00) - Beauty is political and economical (48:25) - Moralising beauty (56:25) - Media representation (59:20) - Sacrificing a generation to change one's values (1:04:05) - Asian fox eye trend (1:10:50) - Dealing with one's own insecurities

Episode Description

What we consider normal seems so obvious that sometimes the possibility of change seems impossible and unlikely.

Every society that has ever existed has clearly preferred thinner bodies, right? That’s just an unchanging law of nature, right? Wrong.

Sometimes, when we’re trying to understand society, it’s important to step away from what learnt cultural assumptions that seem so obvious. Instead, view society in the same way that an alien would view it, with eyes unclouded by cultural biases.

Well, in that case, I think it’s safe to say that humans spend an absurd amount of time on beauty, whether it’s picking out the right suit for a formal, getting a manicure, selecting the shiniest diamond for a wedding ring, spending an unhealthy amount of time deciding if you should change your hairstyle. The truth is, for a vast majority of people on this earth, we are all hopelessly vain and this desire to be beautiful is the cause for a lot of our pain. Companies exploit this insecurity, media elevates those who fit our beauty standards, and even worse, we assign labels of morality like goodness and honesty to people whom we find beauty.

In this episode, I bring on Charlotte, a good friend whom I’ve discussed many of these topics with before, but finally deciding to record and broadcast our words in the hopes that you’ll learn something from this.

So, have a think about beauty, beyond the shallow conception of what looks good and bad, such labels are subjective and are slaves to our environment. Instead, think of beauty as an unrestrained force that beats at the very core of society. An unrestrained force that governs every action we take in our lives.

TIME STAMP:

(6:35) - Wearing make up in year 8

(11:40) - A man-eating auntie

(16:35) - Obsession with pale skin

(24:10) - Is beauty objective or subjective?

(32:00) - Beauty is political and economical

(48:25) - Moralising beauty

(56:25) - Media representation

(59:20) - Sacrificing a generation to change one's values

(1:04:05) - Asian fox eye trend

(1:10:50) - Dealing with one's own insecurities