Solosopher & Solosophy

I daresay that I have always been fondly predisposed to masks, and  a classic example of a masked literary figure is Erik, the Phantom of the Opera!

Now, as the evolution of technology advances towards biomimicry, I wonder- is a mask considered a prosthetic? If so, are ugly people therefore entitled to wearing them in public? Is ugliness a crime??? Why is make up so popular… is it fraud?

Part of me thinks of the fact that is Erik was born in modern times, we would have had different options for him instead of being forced to dwell in a catacomb beneath the Opera House. A step further, which occurred to me in recent times, is to use a facial prosthetic such as those cutting edge silicone masks used by influencers, and probably covert operations. Imagine a Phantom that could 3D print a new identity for himself. Reminds me of the following movies:

Hmm, would the Phantom use it like Darkman, to pretend to be i.e. Raoul? Or would he be more like The Protagonist of “Face of Another” in that he would create a personalised mask for his identity, possibly even modelled after Raoul? Great movie by the way, I really want to watch it with friends. If only I had any! 😜

This material is also featured in my book, Make Up for the Soul, but maybe I will update the section on masks.

Of course, I could not mention a mask without this outrageous reference:

Now, recently I bought a cheap latex mask that was advertising itself as a silicone mask- will it be something I regret, or will it turn out to be something I can use in my ongoing intelligence activities for the MIB? I mean, X-Files division. I MEAN, WAIT, DAMN THIS SODIUM PENTATHOL!