Article 5 Kampala Journal: Rating Beauty With a Tape Measure, Inch by Inch - Compare notions of beauty in cultures around the world and explore the connection between what is deemed 'beautiful' and cultural history
LINK: http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/featured_articles/20010523wednesday.
Information Given by Sarah Buhler, Jessie Shultz and Kevin Adams
Location: Kampala, Uganda
This article takes place in Kampala, Uganda, Africa. Uganda is in East Asia, is divided into 3 major areas, consists of swampland and wooded hills. Bordered by the Congo on the West, Sudan to the North, Kenya to the East and Rwanda to the South. Uganda is in close proximity of other poor countries where AIDS is present. As a result, many women want to look heavier so that they won't be accused of having AIDS. Ugandans are also far away from North America and don't have Western attitudes toward civilization ( J.V. A.C. M.W.)
Quote: "Plus if you are skinny people might think you have AIDS."
"In all, a measuring tape of yellow plastic speared the dreams of over 100 women, and royally irritated Ugandans." (SB,JS,KA)
"Ugandans themselves are clear what they like. It is just that the outside world- at least the ever invasice world of movies, advertisements and beauty pageants- does not have the same idea" (J.V. A.C. M.W.)
Anecdote: "If I tell my friends I was not taken because I was too broad, they laugh at me," said Ms. Matsie. A front-paged headline newspaper later read that "Ugandan girls too short, too broad" (SB,JS,KA)
-The ideal woman to a Ugandan would be anywhere from 143-165 lbs.
-The average Ugandan wants a model to be someone that they can relate to
-If you are skinny, people might accuse you of having AIDS. (J.V. A.C. M.W.)
Key Vocabulary
Euphemism - The substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one thought to be offensive, harsh or blunt.
Paradox - A self contradictory and false proposition.
AIDS - a disease of the immune system characterized byincreased susceptibility to opportune infections.
Biased - to cause partiality or favoritism.
Snub - to check or reject with a sharp rebuke or remark.
malnourished - poorly or improperly nourished. (SB,JS,KA)
Key Vocabulary:
euphemism- substitution of a mild, indirect or vague expression for one thought to be offensive, harsh or blunt.
paradox- a statment or proposition that seems self- contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth. (J.V. A.C. M.W.)
Story Line: This article is about the Kampala women whose dreams were crushed when they were told by South African judges that their bodies weren't right for the Face of Africa contest. If you're too skinny in Uganda, you're thought to have AIDS, which makes the ideal woman between 143 and 165 pounds. (SB,JS,KA)
Brought to Uganda, Africa, there was a beauty contest that required women to be at least 5 foot 7 inches and hips had to be smaller than 36 inches. However, to Ugandan people, being beautiful means that you are larger than the requested size and have bigger hips. No one was choosen from Uganda to be in the beauty pageant, even though some met the requirements. A paradox existed between what the Ugandan's believed beauty was and what the beatuy pageants believed. (J.V. A.C. M.W.)
Beyond the Article
http://www.artmatters.info/fashion/articles/africanbeauty.php
http://pageantcenter.com/majorpageant.html (SB,JS,KA)
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