Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2014

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Beoku-Betts, Josephine

Thesis/Dissertation Co-Chair

Harvey, Mark

Abstract

In this thesis I utilize a feminist case study method to explore gender, race, authenticity, and nationalism in the context of globalization. Each year, Guatemala conducts two ethno-racially distinct pageants – one indigenous, the other ladina. The indigenous pageant prides itself on the authentic display of indigenous culture and physiognomies. On the contrary, during the westernized ladina pageant, contestants strive to adhere to western beauty ideals beauty and cultural norms engendered by discourses of whiteness. However, when the winner advances to the Miss World Pageant, they misappropriate elements of Mayan culture to express an authentic national identity in a way that is digestible to an international audience. In the study that follows, I examine the ways in which national and international pageants are reflective of their respective levels of social and political conflict and how they serve as mechanisms of manipulation by the elite at the national and global levels.

Extent

112 p.

Comments

Includes bibliography.|Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014.|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography.

Identifier

FA00004208

Format

pdf

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