Week 9 - Narayan

Pryanka Narayan  

ASA 141 

Week 9  

The article Race and Beauty: A Comparison of Asian and Western Models in Women’s Magazine Advertisements is a highly intriguing article as it discusses how women are often seen as models within the media, specifically looking at the difference between white and Asian women. For instance, when looking at culture from the Western and Asian standpoint, women from the middle East and other parts of Asia are dressed in modest clothing, while western women are seen as more sexualized. Gaze is also discussed, as it is seen through different lens from gender and culture.  As between men and women, men are taught to have a more dominant stance, while women in the western culture are told to look down and appear passive. This is completely different within the Asian culture, as gaze can be seen intimating. Class is also associated with western women, which is interesting as Asian models dress more modest and are also sexualized. I found this article to be highly intriguing as I found this concept salient while growing up as a young Asian American woman. Toys, models, and actors that were seen as beauty and sexy were always associated with beautiful white woman, while Asian toys and models were seen as boring and too modest. I really hope with the knowledge we are gaining as a society, things began to change and Asian models are given the same importance as western models.