Self-Esteem and Appearance
Q&A Radio: 24 November 2013, Question 2
I answered a question on self-esteem and appearance on 24 November 2013. You can listen to or download the podcast of just this question below – or check out the whole episode of Philosophy in Action Radio.
How is a person's appearance related to self-esteem? Should a rational person care much about his body – including height, weight, musculature, beauty, and so on? Is that second-handed somehow? How much effort should a person exert to make himself look the way he wants to look? Should a person's looks affect his self-esteem?
My Answer, In Brief: A person should care about his body, but he ought to focus more on being healthy, capable, happy, and confident than on satisfying any cultural ideal of beauty.
Tags: Beauty, Body Image, Food, Health, Self-Esteem
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- Duration: 27:16
- Download: MP3 Segment (9.4 MB)
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Relevant Links
- Philosophy in Action: Standards of Beauty
- Picking Up Girls In A Fat Suit
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About Philosophy in Action
I'm Dr. Diana Brickell (formerly Diana Hsieh). I'm a philosopher, and I've long specialized in the application of rational principles to the challenges of real life. I completed my Ph.D in philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2009. I retired from work as a public intellectual in 2015.
From September 2009 to September 2015, I produced a radio show and podcast, Philosophy in Action Radio. In the primary show, my co-host Greg Perkins and I answered questions applying rational principles to the challenges of real life. We broadcast live over the internet on Sunday mornings.
You can listen to these 362 podcasts by subscribing to the Podcast RSS Feed. You can also peruse the podcast archive, where episodes and questions are sorted by date and by topic.
My first book, Responsibility & Luck: A Defense of Praise and Blame, can be purchased in paperback and Kindle. The book defends the justice of moral praise and blame of persons using an Aristotelian theory of moral responsibility, thereby refuting Thomas Nagel's "problem of moral luck." My second book (and online course), Explore Atlas Shrugged, is a fantastic resource for anyone wishing to study Ayn Rand's epic novel in depth.
You can also read my blog NoodleFood and subscribe to its Blog RSS Feed.
I can be reached via e-mail to [email protected].
