Beauty And Success

In the latest 50 years, the global adoration for modern women's body beauty is a shocking phenomenon. With an almost globally heated development of beauty culture, beauty issue has also aroused great interest and concern amid cultural critics and social scientists. Though their theories fall into varied categories, a focused research theme is always demonstrating whether and how women's physical features interact with women's social status and benefits in society. Since 1960s theories and researches of feminist groups have examined the significance of women's beauty in appearance. They normally believe that the rising enthusiasm and worship paid to body beauty is the evidence that women are subordinated by the male-dominated society and that they are objectified and alienated by the commercial society. Thus, they call on women to discard body beauty only with face value and to shift their attention away from catching male gazes to these significant matters on how to promote women's financial and social status. However, their criticism of women's body beauty has been challenged by recent researches conducted in economic and social fields since 1980s, which have confirmed the necessity and importance of the beauty in appearance.Combining these theoretical backgrounds of beauty issue and the risingof career women since 1970s, the thesis will focus its analysis on the striking phenomenon of beauty economy and those modern women who are involved or influenced by this new economy. Aiming to measure the connection of career women's beauty and their common benefits at work, it also helps women form an up-to-date understanding of the pursuits of beauty in appearance in their career development. Particularly, the thesis will juxtapose two kinds of beauty, the beauty in appearance and the inner beauty to achieve self-fulfillment in career success in a textual analysis of Theodore Dreiser's novel, Sister Carrie, so as to constitute a comprehensive picture of the issue.The main body of the thesis is organized into four parts, beginning from the overall introduction of current beauty economy and beauty effect in careers in Chapter One. Then Chapter Two is devoted to feminist criticisms on women's pursuit of material beauty under the influence of beauty economy, particularly on women's application of cosmetics. Chapter Three, with a typical textual analysis of Sister Carrie by Theodore Dreiser, presents detailed evidence as to how a woman's beauty contributes to her rise in beauty-bigoted career. Based on analysis above, the final part draws a conclusion on the relationship between women's beauty and women's success in the career world.It should also be noted that cultural evidence supporting my thesis is not confined to American society only. I also draw my study cases and supporting examples from Chinese society.