Student Forum: Global Glamour and Global Identity Panel Discussion

Event summaries from Globalization Week Spring 2004

Date: Tuesday, April 13, 2004, 6:30-8:00 pm
Location: Elliott School Room #213

Are the Western parameters of what is beautiful widening, or is the Western ideal of beauty taking over the world? Many observers worry that a "Westernization" of beauty will lead to a loss of national character and a dilution of cultural preferences. However, Western observers like to point out that influences from other parts of the world—among them India, Asia, and Latin America—are now making their ways to magazine covers and consumers all throughout the West. To what extent is beauty becoming globalized? What impact do these trends have on individual and societal conceptions of the beautiful and glamorous?

The goal of the panel discussion is to explore the changing face of glamour around the world. More specifically, our panel will discuss what constitutes beauty in different parts of the world and how the spread of globalization is changing this. Some of the major questions we hope to address include:

  • Are beauty ideals becoming homogenized throughout the world? Or more diverse? Does this represent a recent phenomenon, or have changing perceptions of beauty always accompanied global interactions?
  • Who is responsible for deciding what these ideals are in a particular time period?
  • Can anyone actually live up to these ideals? Or does "ideal" necessarily imply an abstract, unattainable concept?
  • What kind of impacts do beauty ideals have on women's self perception and identity worldwide?
  • To what degree are our notions of beauty determined by society versus genetic or biological predispositions?

Speakers:

  • Dr. Susan Ossman, Georgetown University. Dr. Ossman is an anthropologist with a research focus on globalization. Her latest book, Three Faces of Beauty (2002) develops an account of globalization based on research into beauty salons as places where images are embodied and debates about beauty and identity are elaborated.
  • Diana N'Diaye, Cultural Specialist and Folklife Curator for the Center for Folklife Programs & Cultural Studies at the Smithsonian Institution. She currently teaches African Transnational Experiences.