Can We like Beauty and Badness? A Conversation about Beauty and Morality

Join Michael Spicher, a public philosopher, for an evening devoted to exploring the relationship between beauty and morality.

In the 18th century, philosophers often claimed a connection between morality and beauty. They seemed to think that a virtuous person was able to comprehend beauty more fully. We don’t generally think this way anymore. But we still tend to believe some relationship exists between beauty and morality. Imagine someone you would describe as a “beautiful person,” which is usually in reference to their character. Therefore, I assume this person is not evil. The way we use words suggests a connection. But beyond our choice of terms, recent science has also confirmed that we tend to think that attractive people are also good people to some extent. The relationship between beauty and morality is at least complicated, so we will learn from each other’s experiences and draw ideas from philosophy and science to help us learn how to approach this relationship.

In this salon, we tackle questions like:

Why do we think beautiful people are also good?

What do we mean by beauty and morality?

How has this relationship been used to disadvantage or even oppress others?

Can art be immoral and yet beautiful?

Recommended reading:

Beauty and Morality

Disgust, Morality, and Negative Aesthetics

This event will be recorded.