Geopol, Faria 2022

Allure and the spatialities of nationalism, war and development: Towards a geography of beauty

How is beauty linked to colonialism?

It justifies saving, possessing, and “developing” places and people.

How is beauty politically powerful?

It shapes bodies, nations, tourism, and global economies.

What are the four geographic elements of beauty?

Performativity, place-making, mobility/fixity, scalar power.

How is beauty socially structured?

Gendered, racialised, classed.

What is the feminist critique of beauty?

It enforces unrealistic and oppressive standards.

What does Black feminist theory add to beauty studies?

Shows racial inequality and beauty as resistance.

How were beauty salons politically important?

Civil Rights organising spaces for Black women.

What is the link between beauty and place?

Beauty norms differ across geography and culture.

What is commodity racism?

Global profit from racialised beauty ideals (e.g. skin whitening).

Which countries are linked to skin whitening markets?

India, Ghana, South Africa.

What is intersectional beauty theory?

Beauty shaped by race, class, gender, disability.

How are women linked to nationalism?

They symbolise nation, family, and culture.

Why are beauty pageants politically important?

They construct gendered national identity.

What is a critique of pageants?

They reinforce whiteness and exclusion.

How can pageants be resistance?

Diasporic and alternative pageants challenge norms.

What are “Miss Landmine” pageants?

Cambodia/Angola pageants critiquing war and ableism.

What is war photography critique?

It aestheticises suffering and flattens reality.

What is “war porn”?

Fetishisation of violence in media.

How is beauty used in development?

It attracts tourism, FDI, and national branding.

What did Oza argue about India?

Globalisation reinforced Western beauty ideals in the 1990s.

What is the Beauty School of Kabul case?

US-led project showing beauty as “liberation” and geopolitics.

What is scalar power of beauty?

Beauty operates across body–local–global scales.