From washing to whitening: the cosmetic practices and beauty politics of Vietnamese-American women in Boston
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Abstract
This thesis examines perceptions of normative beauty ideals among Vietnamese-American women and the impact of these ideals on beauty seeking behaviors. I explore women’s lived experience of beauty via practices pursued and products consumed, and frame beauty work as a disciplinary practice, as well as an investment in embodied species of capital. I query how ideals of appearance relate to being Vietnamese within American culture and the critical role of appearance in affirming identity. The methods used were in-depth interviews (n=5), an open-ended response Internet survey (n=19), and a content analysis of a transnational Pond's advertisement to which both Internet participants and in-depth interview participants contributed.
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Thesis (M.A.)--Boston University