The Idea of Beauty Series

The Humanities Center explores the true meaning behind Mother Rosalie Hill’s mission statement

Yasmin Madjidi | Contributor | USD Vista

Beauty, goodness, and truth. These are the three fundamental ideas that the Humanities Center is attempting to investigate over the course of the next three spring semesters. This year’s series focused on the idea of beauty, with the concluding event highlighting “Women and the Problem of Beauty.” The discussion became a critique of society’s habit to frame women into a concept of beauty in which they are both the subject that society oversexualizes and the object that they desire.

The conversation, while centralizing on beauty, covered topics including the socially constructed gender hierarchy, women in politics, USD’s own beauty, and hegemonic symbols of whiteness. A dynamic selection of faculty examined these concepts through various disciplines which provided for a diverse discussion.

Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Noelle Norton, Ph.D., served as the mediator. Also included in the event were: Lori Watson, Ph.D., Karen Shelby, Ph.D., Casey Dominguez, Ph.D., Erin Lovette-Colyer, director of the Women’s Center, and Angela Nurse, Ph.D.

Watson, chair of the Philosophy department, made clear her unapologetic point of view about the constant sexualizaion and exploitation of women in all parts of society. She shared her opinions on the impact she sees this series having on campus, and the importance of the discussion of beauty.

“It provokes reflection about the values that USD espoused as central to its identity,” Watson said. “And for us to think carefully from different disciplinary perspectives about the meaning of those terms, how to understand them, critique them, adds to community and university understanding of how it understands itself and how to think through these ideas in a careful fashion.”

Shelby and Dominguez, professors in Political Science and International Relations, respectively, took on a more political stance of beauty and how women are objectified in the political arena. Shelby primarily discussed how beauty is central to “Trumpland” and condemned the way that President Trump’s leadership shapes how we understand women’s roles in political places. Dominguez pinpointed the unfortunate truth that a woman’s perceived competence in politics has an inverse relationship with her beauty. She elaborated by stating that a beautiful woman is seen as incapable of being a successful politician, while the opposite is true for a man. Dominguez stated that the irony of the expectation for women to be beautiful except for when she is accomplished has steered them away from pursuing careers in politics.

First-year Fiona Martin reflected on the role of beauty in politics as seen in the most recent presidential election.

“I really liked the discussion by Dr. Shelby about how our political decisions are influenced by beauty,” Martin said. “I remember listening to the discussion about what Hillary Clinton was wearing and how her pantsuits were a main topic of discussion whereas Trump’s political ideas were his main topic of discussion, and how our votes are influenced by beauty moreso for women than men.”

Martin also commented on why she attended the event and its positive impacts.

“As a Women and Gender Studies minor I thought attending a talk like this, especially with a professor I have already had in the past, would give me new insights on things I’ve already heard about in class,” Martin said. “It promotes discussion about topics that I find interesting and prevalent in today’s society, especially on a college campus where generally women’s rights and women’s voices are very important however very overlooked.”

Relating to USD as a whole, Lovette-Colyer mentioned students’ viewpoints as to what beauty means to them on campus.

It comes as no surprise that people’s immediate comments included USD’s charming Spanish architecture, stunning ocean view, and the recent ranking as the nation’s most beautiful campus by The Princeton Review.

However upon deeper reflection, the stereotype of the rich, white, blonde-haired, and blue-eyed girl appeared. Beauty on campus is bound up in privilege, and it is Lovette-Colyer’s mission to address the power of oppression and beauty applications at school.

First-year Malia Bott spoke in opposition of Lovette-Colyer’s opinions about the value of beauty on campus.

“While I believe there are students who fall under that category, there are many students here who do not,” Bott said. “I know many people who attend USD on financial aid and scholarships, and other students who are paying their tuition through work-study. I think USD needs to work on diversity on campus, as our school is a predominately white space, but I don’t think we can characterize every student on campus under one stereotype.”

Nurse, a post doctoral fellow in the Sociology department, shifted the rhetoric toward the intersection of race and gender in that of the pressure that marginalized women, specifically women of color, have to fulfill the simply unattainable standards of white beauty. Society and, as discussed previously by Lovette-Colyer, this school in general, put a premium on aesthetic whiteness. Nurse pointed out that in our community, to be beautiful is equivalent to positivity and goodness. However, if this is true, she voiced her concern about how the possibility for minority women to successfully navigate institutions that value beauty becomes near impossible.

In the words of Mother Rosalie Hill, “Beauty will attract them, goodness will lead them, but the truth will hold them.” Her statement was critically analyzed at each event during the Idea of Beauty series as the panelists provided the audience with a varied dialogue. Her testimony about USD at its source has been labeled as a phrase where the meaning has been lost due to its overuse.

Consequently, the Humanities Center’s endeavor into seeking the validity and application of Mother Rosalie Hill’s remarks over the next three years will surely be one to follow.