Name: KESIA GOMES DA SILVA
Publication date: 15/08/2025
Examining board:
Name |
Role |
|---|---|
| ANDRESSA ZOI NATHANAILIDIS | Presidente |
| EDNA DA SILVA POLESE | Examinador Interno |
| PAULO ROBERTO SODRÉ | Examinador Interno |
| WALLAS GOMES ZOTELI | Examinador Externo |
Summary: This dissertation investigates the representation of the "ugly woman" in the Vida
Capichaba magazine during the 1920s, with an emphasis on literary texts extracted from
the periodical that linked standards of female beauty and ugliness to the social morality
of the time. Based on a corpus centered on the theme of female ugliness, the analysis
examines how the discourse on ugliness operated in the 1920s as a mechanism of
symbolic control and reaffirmation of the patriarchal order, reinforcing stereotypes that
associated the "ugly woman" with the ideal housewife. The research falls within the
field of literary studies with a documentary approach, drawing on authors such as Roger
Chartier (1991; 1995; 2002), Pierre Bourdieu (1989), Michel Foucault (1996; 2008),
Umberto Eco (2004; 2007), Naomi Wolf (2019), and Joana Novaes (2006) to discuss
the notions of representation, female ugliness, symbolic power, and discourse. For
insights into the social history of women, the contributions of Mary del Priore (2017).
From a linguistic perspective, appeal the studies of Luiz Carlos Travaglia (2015) are
particularly relevant. The study reveals that the woman deemed ugly was often praised
as the ideal marriage partner, as she posed no threat to the prevailing patriarchal order,
standing in contrast to the beautiful — and therefore "dangerous" — woman. The
analysis highlights the authors’ explicit misogyny toward both “beautiful” and “ugly”
women, as they erased female identity through press discourse, promoting the
naturalization of behaviors or the repetition of patterns that aligned with the provincial
conservatism of the period.
