{"product_id":"the-beauty-paradox-femininity-in-the-age-of-selfies-9781538175736","title":"The Beauty Paradox: Femininity in the Age of","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eIs beauty a form of oppression for women? Or does it offer them a path to empowerment? Some scholars see beauty as an oppressive system thwarting women’s agency, sometimes to the point of damaging their mental health; others have promoted an understanding of beauty as an empowering practice through which women can affirm their agency and self-determination. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWestern beauty culture is organized by contradictory injunctions framing women’s participation in beautification. Drawing on relevant scholarly literature, contemporary North American popular culture, and two years of sociological fieldwork, The Beauty Paradox begins by identifying the four main paradoxes of beauty culture: the worth paradox, the authenticity paradox, the power paradox, and the commitment paradox. Piazzesi looks at how these four paradoxes trail women’s everyday experiences, choices, and reflections regarding beauty. She examines the role of beauty in women’s everyday lives and in a variety of contexts: informal social encounters, work and career settings, parenting, intergenerational relationships, self-care, and online networking practices. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe author supports her theoretical stance with data collected through two years of fieldwork with eleven women living in Montreal (funded by Fond du Québec de la Recherche—Société et culture). Participants were interviewed about their views on attractiveness, beautification, the pressure to be beautiful or to appear young, and how they negotiate these challenges on an individual basis. As part of this project, each participant produced a series of selfies, which they discussed in interviews. In a first for sociological scholarship on beauty, Walking the Tightrope foregrounds the place of attractiveness in women’s visual self-expression online.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eAcknowledgements \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntroduction: Walking the Tightrope\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChapter One: The Paradoxes of Beauty\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Worth Paradox\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Authenticity Paradox\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Power Paradox\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Commitment Paradox\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat Is a Pragmatic Paradox?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion: Negotiating the Paradoxes of Beauty\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChapter Two: Beauty, Wellness, and Authenticity\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhere Is Beauty Situated?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTraditional Discourses on Beauty, Health, and Morals\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Paradoxes of Wellness and Self-Care\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNatural Beauty and the Authenticity Paradox\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhere Does “Feeling Beautiful” Really Come From?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion: Normative Authenticity\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChapter Three: Commitment and Investment\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eInvesting Money and Time\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Salience of Hair and Makeup\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCommitting to Thinking, Planning, and Judging\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Day as a Measure of Beauty\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion: How Much Is Enough?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChapter Four:Time, Aging, and Motherhood \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeing Young\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeing No Longer Young\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMotherhood\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Intergenerational Gaze\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion: The Temporality of Beauty\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChapter Five: Work and Social Life\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBeauty and Sociability\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWorking with Beauty\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFavours and Privileges\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion: Uncertain Gains\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eChapter Six: Selfies and the Digital World\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Place of Beauty in Selfies\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Paradox of the “Narcissistic” Selfie\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Authenticity Paradox and the Selfie-Taking Online Persona\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion: Negotiating Visibility\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eConclusion: Beauty and the Paradoxes of Women’s Subjectivity\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAppendix A: Introducing the Participants\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAppendix B: Methodological Design and Procedure\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBibliography\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rowman \u0026 Littlefield","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51041247297879,"sku":"9781538175736","price":82.8,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9781538175736.jpg?v=1750949502","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-beauty-paradox-femininity-in-the-age-of-selfies-9781538175736","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}