Pretty modern : beauty, sex, and plastic surgery in Brazil / Alexander Edmonds.
| Author/creator | Edmonds, Alexander, 1970- |
| Format | Electronic |
| Publication Info | Durham [N.C.] : Duke University Press, 2010. |
| Description | 1 online resource (297 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates) : illustrations (some color) |
| Supplemental Content | EBSCOhost |
| Subjects |
| Series | e-Duke books scholarly collection. ^A1054174 |
| Contents | Siliconadas -- The philosopher of plástica -- Without tits there is no paradise -- A brief history of self-esteem -- Hospital school -- The right to beauty -- Aesthetic health -- Preta -- Magnificent miscegenation -- The national passion -- Nanci's rhinoplasty -- My Black is my brand -- Role models -- The economy of appearances -- Creating and modeling nature -- Aesthetic medicine and motherhood -- The vanity of maids -- Lens of dreams -- I love myself. |
| Abstract | Pretty Modern is a riveting account of Brazil's emergence as a global leader in plastic surgery. Intrigued by a Carnaval parade that mysteriously paid homage to a Rio de Janeiro plastic surgeon, anthropologist Alexander Edmonds conducted research that took him from Ipanema socialite circles to glitzy telenovela studios to the packed waiting rooms of public hospitals offering free cosmetic surgery. The result is provocative exploration of the erotic, commercial, and intimate aspects of beauty in a nation with extremes of wealth and poverty and a reputation for natural sensuality. Drawing on conversations with maids and their elite mistresses, divorced housewives, black celebrities, and favela residents aspiring to be fashion models, Edmonds analyzes what sexual desirability means and does for women in different social positions. He argues that beauty is a distinct realm of modern experience that does not simply reflect other inequalities. It mimics the ambiguous emancipatory potential of capital, challenging traditional hierarchies while luring consumers into a sexual culture that reduces the body to the brute biological criteria of attractiveness. Illustrated with color photographs, Pretty Modern offers a fresh theoretical perspective on the significance of female beauty in consumer capitalism. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-285) and index. |
| Source of description | Print version record. |
| Issued in other form | Print version: Edmonds, Alexander, 1970- Pretty modern. Durham, N.C. : Duke University Press, 2010 9780822347859 0822347857 |
| Genre/form | Electronic books. |
| ISBN | 9780822393115 (electronic bk.) |
| ISBN | 0822393115 (electronic bk.) |
| ISBN | 1283251876 |
| ISBN | 9781283251877 |
| ISBN | (cloth ; alk. paper) |
| ISBN | (cloth ; alk. paper) |
| ISBN | (pbk. ; alk. paper) |
| ISBN | (pbk. ; alk. paper) |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic Resources | Access Content Online | ✔ Available |