Are You Your Body?

"In the 1997 comedy , Jim Carrey plays Fletcher Reede, an unscrupulous lawyer who never lets the truth stand in the way of an opportunity to advance his own interests. Having been burned by Reede's deceits time and again, Max-his young son-makes a wish that for just one day his father would not be able to tell a lie. Magically, the wish comes true and Reede is confronted with the hilarious ramifications of total transparency."

""Sometimes grownups need to lie," he insists. "Here's a good example: When your mommy was pregnant with you, she gained a good 40 pounds. There was nothing she wouldn't eat... But when she'd ask me how she looked, I'd say, 'Honey, you look great! You're beautiful. You're glowing.' If I'd have told mommy she looked like a cow, it would have hurt her feelings." In response to this, the child repeats a platitude we all know well-"My teacher tells me real beauty is on the inside"-to which Reede unthinkingly retorts, "That's just something ugly people say.""

Culturally, people often regard the inner self or psyche as the true self, thereby diminishing the importance of the physical body. Neglecting the body can be perilous because physical embodiment distinguishes individuals from one another. The 1997 comedy Liar Liar features Jim Carrey as Fletcher Reede, a lawyer who habitually lies. A wish by his son forces Reede to be unable to lie for a day, producing comedic consequences. In a notable scene Reede defends lying to protect feelings by praising his pregnant wife's appearance, prompting the child's 'real beauty is on the inside' reply and Reede's blunt retort that underscores the salience of physical attraction. The scene challenges contemporary claims that inner qualities alone determine worth and gestures toward longer philosophical debates about body and identity.

Read at Psychology Today