$MASKS

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There are a number of cultural and psychological factors converging in the experience 
of the mask. When someone covers up their own identity with a mask they become an 
abstract animation. If the mask conveys a symbolic meaning that we can read, we may be 
instantly aware of complex layers of meaning, or we may respond emotionally to the signals 
in the mask even beyond our conscious reasoning. The mask makes the actor into 
someone else, and we immediately accept them in their new role. Somehow, masks make 
us believe comfortably and safely in the illusion, the way a child believes in a cartoon 
character. Realistic plays with realistic make-up cause us to forget that a play is an illusion. 
It is ironic that masks, which are highly unrealistic, also make us forget that a play is an 
illusion.