Monica Kim

HIST 25B, F 12pm

25 April 2014
RRJ on Hijas Americanas: Beauty, Body Image, and Growing Up Latina by Rosie
Molinary (Pg 5-16, 181-216, 245-265)
1. Summary
This book is a collection of both the authors, Roise Molinarys experiences
and thoughts on living in a community as a Latina, and of five hundred other Latina
women. She manipulates two methods of research to collect data for her book,
which includes a survey of 157 questions on the physicality of concepts we create in
society. For example, her questions are based on ideas of beauty, sexuality, and
impacts of faith, social norms, and family. She called it the Growing Up Latina
Survey throughout her writing. She also conducted a total of 80 interviews with her
two assistants with individual women who came from the same demographics.
Through these studies, Molinary was able to gain statistical evidence from the
stories mentioned by the interviews and the data gathered from the questionnaires.
The main purpose of Molinarys book is to encourage individuals to accept who we
are and to embrace it, rather than trying to belong somewhere I do not.
In Maria de la Barbie, chapter seven, Molinary begins with the question,
what does it mean to be beautiful in America? There are several mediums as to
where individuals gain the definition of what beauty is. They can come from either
social media, movies, magazines, or even inspirational speakers and leaders of
today. Molinary describes the struggles Latinas go through in trying to fit into
either/or definition of beauty in two different cultures. She also mentions that
television played a large role in how she began to perceive beauty. Giving examples
of her childhood and how as elementary students, Molinary and her friends were
concerned about their weight and later causing them to play games like Model in
their preteens. Though many sources of media portrayed beauty based on the
typical white woman, through Molinarys survey, she realized that more and more
women started to see people of color as beautiful as well. This shows that the media
has been working to incorporate women of different ethnic backgrounds into the
game of beauty.
Chapter nine, Giving up Beauty, is introduced by the experience of Molinarys
breast-reduction process. Through her process of meeting with her surgeon and to
the point where she lied on the operating table, the main thought Molinary had was
that she was going to lose the one thing that defined her beauty. Later, Molinary
writes something a women named Iris says about beauty and confidence. She says
that it is confidence that individuals need in themselves. By having the confidence
that one is beautiful just the way they are can break the norm of beauty in the world.

2. Response
Having read this book, I have gained encouragements from the women who
spoke out about their complexes on outer and inner beauty. Knowing how hard it
must have been to speak up about their struggles on how the world perceived them
and categorized them in the beauty column broke my heart. However, through their
experiences, I am glad that they were able to overcome their struggles and become
confident women who are not afraid of showing who they really are. I think growing
up I had many worries about my physical appearance as well. Because I wore
glasses or didnt wear make up while my peers did in middle school, for example, I
was not portrayed as beautiful. Instead, I was seen as a nerd. Now that I look back, I
am proud to call myself a nerd because during those times, I was able to focus more
on my studies and not my appearance, which helped me to succeed academically.
I was really encouraged by how Molinary was able to bring out her life
stories to help other women and individuals who go through the same thing today.
Even though it did not directly relate to me because I am not a Latina, as a women
we all go through this phase one time or another, and it was nice to have someone
voice out their opinions for those who cannot. Rather than worrying about what I
will wear or how someone will perceive me tomorrow, I have learned that all that
does not really matter. What matters is the fact that I see myself to be beautiful
inside and out because the way I am is perfect in the eyes of God who created me.
What man defines beauty to be is not of importance and should not be a priority for
individuals because that is what corrupts the minds of young children.

3. Discussion Questions
a. Why might Latinas be socially considered to be sexual beings? In other words,
why are Latinas not seen and judged based on their intellects but on their
sexuality most of the time?
b. How does the world perceive beauty? (Based off the question from page 181). Is
it the inner beauty that we tend to see or is it the outer beauty? And what really
is outer beauty?

4. Reading Response
I wish I could have read through the entire book in one sitting. What
Molinary had to say about her ethnicity and how she learned to embrace who she
was, was very intriguing and encouraging. I felt like I wanted to read more and also
have time to reflect over myself as an Asian American, but because I was so short on
time, I was not able to do so. Through this book, I now understand that I do not
have to worry about what people might think of me when I go to a new place. I just
need to be myself. I do not have to belong anywhere but accept myself for who I am.
If people judge me because of I might not fit into the social norm of society, then that
is their problem. I should not let that get to me and constantly put myself down for
something that is not even worth my time. This piece of writing was an
encouragement to me and I think whoever reads it, male or female, will be
encouraged and will learn how to survive in a society that constantly wants to
create a Barbie-like figure, perfect!

5. Good Words or Golden Lines
a. Boricua (pg 5)
This word basically means a Puerto Rican who lives in the United States. It
helped me to look up this word because I was able to better understand what the
guy was saying.

b. I wasnt sure where I fit in or what I was. I was someone who knew what it was
like to be seen, but not valued or heard (6).
This seemed like a golden line worth noting because just from the first few
pages of the writing, I can already tell what this story might be able. The narrator is
in search for her identity in society and to feel a sense of belonging and not
aloneness. I think weve all gone through this one time or another growing up. I can
remember a time in middle school where I was in search of where I truly belonged
amongst my peers. People knew who I was, but they just didnt seem to enjoy my
presence for who I was, whether it was my personality or where my ethnic
background was from. I think as we grow up and experience these things, we learn
our true selves and what we value vs. what man values.

c. Love who you are. Everyone is different. No one is the same. Embrace the way you
are and be confident (252).
This is a golden line because it gives an encouragement to many individuals
on how one should think of themselves. I realized that whatever the world might
say about my physicality, I should not let that define who I really am. There is no
one in this world that is like me. That makes me unique and special. I need to
find that inner beauty in myself first before I let the world see who I really am. If
I cannot have respect for myself or be confident of who I am, how is anyone else
going to do the same for me?