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| author | Catherine L Spino |
| title | The Eye of the Beholder: Julia Pastrana, Saarjie Baartman, and the Social Anxieties that Surround Women who Cannot be Controlled |
| abstract | This paper explores the lives of two female freaks who were exhibited during Victorian Era London and nineteenth century France:
Julia Pastrana, "The Ugliest Woman in the World" based on her beard; and Saarjie Baartman, the voluptuous, large buttocked "Hottentot Venus." Both women were unable to
fit into the proper gender and racial norms of the societies they were exhibited in and could only survive as objects to be gazed upon. This paper looks into the lives
of both Pastrana and Baartman and explores the gender and racial norms of the Victorian Era as well as nineteenth century France to highlight their otherness. Using
textual analysis of two plays written on Pastrana and Baartman as well as discuss of Bertolt Brecht and his Epic theatre, Pastrana and Baartman's stories can
continue to influence the way present day society look at their otherness as well as formulate opinions on their own gaze onto bodies of otherness. Even though
Pastrana and Baartman are gone, the social anxieties that surround women who defy social norms still exist in present day American society. This paper hopes to
create a dialogue on how we view feminine bodies of otherness and what this says about us as a society.
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| school | The College of Liberal Arts, Drew University |
| degree | B.A. (2015) |
| advisor | Lisa Brenner |
| committee | Lisa Brenner
Scott Bonn
Christopher Ceraso
Kimberly Rhodes |
| full text | CLSpino.pdf |
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