Library: Gender Research: Visual Media

Spotlight on Beauty and Race

Posing Beauty: African American Images from the 1890s and the Present
Call Number: L 779.089 W734p
"More than two hundred striking photos of African-American models discovered by the author in her search for black representation in pre-civil rights culture are presented in a collection that includes portraits of such figures as Josephine Baker, Muhammad Ali, and Denzel Washington."

Gender and Advertising

Searching for primary texts? Take a look at Beauty and Hygiene advertisements from the 20s through the 50s available through Duke University Libraries.

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Videos to Check Out

The library contains many DVDs and videos on gender. The select titles below look at various facets of gender. Don't forget to check the catalog for DVDs of popular films that you can use as primary texts to explore gender. Click on the title to check availibility.

Killing Us Softly 4: Advertising's Image of Women
Explores the impact advertisements have on body image and gender.
The Codes of Gender: Identity + Performance in Pop Culture
Studies gender roles as depicted in mass media, such as commercials.
Sex & Marriage
Examination of marriages across different cultures.
America the Beautiful
Film looks at American perceptions of beauty, cosmetic surgery procedures, and struggles with body image.

Fictional Films and Gender

Rachel Getting Married
Call Number: DVD 791.4372 R119
Brokeback Mountain
Call Number: DVD 791.436278 B867
The Color Purple
Call Number: DVD 791.4372 C7194
The Hangover
Call Number: DVD 791.43617 H239