Beauty and Culture
Explore the intersection of beauty and culture with our curated list of must-read beauty books. Discover how traditions, history, and art shape global beauty standards and practices.
Book
On Ugliness
by Umberto Eco
Acclaimed philosopher and author Umberto Eco explores mans fascination with evil, the grotesque, freakishness, and horror in art and literature. This provocative discussion explores in depth the concepts of evil, depravity, and darkness in art and literature.Rizzoli
Book
The Beauty Myth
by Naomi Wolf
The bestselling classic that redefined our view od the relationship between beauty and female identity. In today's world, women have more power, legal recognition, and professional success than ever before. Alongside the evident progress of the women's movement, however, writer and journalist Naomi Wolf is troubled by a different kind of social control, which, she argues, may prove just as restrictive as the traditional image of homemaker and wife. It's the beauty myth, an obsession with physical perfection that traps the modern woman in an endless spiral of hope, self-consciousness, and self-hatred as she tries to fulfill society's impossible definition of "the flawless beauty."
Book
History of Beauty
by Umberto Eco
Explores the nature, the meaning, and the very history of the idea of beauty in Western culture; illustrated with abundant examples of painting and sculpture and lengthy quotations from writers and philosophers. Demonstrates how every historical era has had its own ideas about eye-appeal.
