Tracy Patton's explanatory article, ''Hey Girl I am More Than My Hair?'', is centered on the close examination of the negative impact Euro-American standards of beauty has on African American women. Patton critically analyzes beauty from its historical context to help determine whether or not modern day interpretations of beauty are continually being determined by the hegemonic role of white supremacy. The main objective of her article is to bring to light the economic, physical, and psychological impact women of color face when they adhere to beauty standards that advocate the suppression of their culturally distinct features. By refusing to assimilate, black women forgo employment opportunities, experience heightened stress, and risk social
By the twentieth century, slavery had damaged black pride, and made it known that black features were inferior. When it came to black women and their hair, black women desperately wanted to match the standard of “white” beauty. Walker’s solution to this was to create a look that was Afro-American without trying to imitate whites. Walker spoke about beauty emphasizing that to be beautiful does not refer to the complexion of your skin, or the texture of your hair, but having a beautiful mind, soul, and character.
In “Theories of Time and Space,” Natasha Trethewey details the evolution of maturity in humans and how that process occurs using a journey to Gulfport, Mississippi. Trethewey begins her work by establishing a destination and starting point that are a metaphors for the progression of innocence to maturity, and she concludes by explaining the significance of that change. All of these components work together to develop an allegory about the human condition. An allegory, as defined in Rapaport’s “The Literary Toolkit,” is “the extension of an analogy into an isomorphic set of correspondences,” that transform the literal meaning (Rapaport, 110). Trethewey uses the literal meaning of a physical journey to Ship Island to create an allegory about
The short story "Barbie-Q,” by Sandra Cisneros has many reflections on cultural diversity and how each culture views its own individual beauty of women and girls which is cultural beauty. Women value culture and the beauty it represents. In the short story "Barbie-Q, "p. 205 (line 1 ) , Sandra Cisneros reveals
Jennifer Lopez was born in the Bronx, New York on July 24, 1970. She was born in the United States to Puerto Rican Parents, Jennifer considers herself to be a Puerto Rican and she is very proud of her Hispanic heritage and culture. Her father is David Lopez, a computer specialist, and her mother Guadalupe Lopez, a Kindergarten teacher. Her parents recognized Jennifer’s talent and enthusiasm for performing and at the age of five the enrolled her in dance classes. Her mother said “Jennifer always loved to sing, but she was also a great actress and knew that she would have a bright future ahead of her.” With the support of her parents Jennifer grew up to be a very sensible girl, who is still very close to her family. When Jennifer earned her million-dollar paycheck for playing the role in the movie Selena, she bought her mom a Cadillac. Even though they saw Jennifer’s talent at the age of five, their relationship was not always understandable. Jennifer made a major decision and that was not to go to College. That decision was very disappointing to her parents who wanted her to go to law school. Her parents supported her pursuit of a career in show business, they did not wanted to be in the expense of her education. When Jennifer told her parents that she was not going to College and law school, they thought it was really stupid to go off and try to be a movie star.
Wolf, Naomi. The Beauty Myth. How Images of Beauty are Used Against Women. New York: William Morrow, 1991.
Cox’s work is exactly the type of discussion that is needed to move the discourse on black women’s bodies from being regarded as part of a stereotype to being regarded as individuals with beautiful differences. This is not a ‘re-mirroring’ of the ‘un-mirrored,’ but rather a creation of a new image, void of previous misconceptions but filled with individuality. The stereotypes concerning black women’s bodies needs to be abolished, not reinvented like Hobson suggests in “Venus in the Dark: Blackness and Beauty in Popular Culture.”
Many aspects of this time period is shown to have had an impact on Westerfeld’s novel, Uglies. Women beauty standards have been prevalent since the beginning of history, however the 1960s saw birth to unrealistic beauty standards. Women during this time were expected to have a willowy look, which includes a thin body, long slim legs and an adolescent physique. Women who did not meet this standard were looked down upon by other members of society for not holding a desired beauty. The discrimination “uglies” face from pretties is linked to this standard faced by women in Westerfeld’s community. Many pretties laugh at respective “uglies” prior to their operation as “uglies” look different than their pretty counterparts. When Tally sneaks into a pretties only party, she “[feels] uglier every second she [spends] there. Being laughed at by everyone she met wasn’t helping much” (Westerfeld 13). For being an “ugly,” Tally is laughed at, and made to be like a second class by the pretties because she is different than them. In Westerfeld’s American society, if a woman does not achieve the thin, willowy look that is desired, then she experiences the exact feelings of inferiority. The discrimination faced by “uglies” as well as women who do not meet the beauty standard, are connected in the ideology that being ugly, makes you of lesser importance than a prettier counterpart. The 1960s saw a strong push for equal rights for African
Lisa Hooker Campbell is an active volunteer in the Nashville area. She has served on numerous boards and chaired several of Nashville's most prominent philanthropic events.
Almost 250 years of slavery and anti-blackness within the United States has created a divide in what type of hair is acceptable. According to Cynthia L. Robinson, “Black hair texture is graded” (Robinson 2011). Precisely, this means that a Black woman has either good hair or bad hair. Good hair has a resemblance of European hair texture, meaning straight and wavy curls. Good hair also diminishes the look of African ancestry. Bad is the complete opposite. The texture is kinky, coiled, and thick, giving the appearance of short hair (Robinson 2011). Hair that bears a resemblance to Eurocentric beauty standards is more beautiful and makes the individual with that hair type more beautiful as well (Robinson
Throughout time, hair has been part of the establishment of understanding ones identity, especially when it comes to women. Many try to stereotype African hair by hyphenating American to the end, but physical attributes are determined by lineage, not geography. In African American culture, hair is one of the few characteristics that connect individuals back to their African ancestry. African American women can find a foundation of black pride through their hair, but they can also discover a source of humiliation and identity confusion as well. Marcus Garvey expressed that African Americans must “remove the kinks from [their] minds, not [their] hair” meaning that they should ignore society’s expectations and embrace not only their beautiful kinky hair, but their identity as an African American. By choosing to style hair in a significant way defines not only who an individual is, but the acceptance of their heredity.
Identity and Black Female Beauty" In the article it states how blacks in the United States have
Most beauty advertisements are geared toward women; men still feel the need to lighten their skin. Many dark-skinned people are told by beauty and cosmetic advertisements that their color is repulsive. They are repeatedly told to modify their bodies to fit the White image of beauty. This is not an isolated case in Ghana. The problem with fitting into the White image is that it does not exist (Hunter 2011 and Pierre 2008). The look that Ghanaians are trying to conform to is unrealistic. It is l...
You might imagine that the pressure on women to appear as desirable as possible is an obstacle that our society has outgrown after multiple waves of feminism. You'd be wrong. If it's at all possible, it seems like this pressure is only ever escalating. The fact is, as much as people may assert their status as independent free-thinkers, most of them remain bound to the invisible rules that blur their perception of true beauty. Feminists are concerned about objectification. Psychologists are worried about unattainable beauty benchmarks. Terrified mothers confident that the industry will somehow convince their daughters to be over sexualised at a young age. What I’m trying to say is that the pressure to conform to beauty standards does not only effect individual women, but everyone around them.
For young people, physical beauty has become an American value, a prerequisite for acceptance into a vein, racist and unethical American society. The story of Pecola, a young black girl, growing up in Ohio in 1941 clearly shows the fact that the “American Dream” was not available to everyone. Black children are invisible in this world, not special and almost nothing. The vision that the color of your skin somehow made you unimportant by both blacks and whites. White skin meant beauty, and cleanliness; that idea was not questioned at this time in history. In this book Toni Morrison presents that beauty is “The American Dream.”
This has triggered women to aspire to the white standard of beauty. White became associated with good features, such as straight long hair, a small nose and thin lips, while bad features were associated with black features (Neal & Wilson, 1989). The notio...