“Slit eyes and hook nose”. The beauty standards of the Yoshiwara Yu:jo during the Edo period
https://doi.org/10.28995/2658-4158-2022-1-72-90
Abstract
The paper considers the daily life of the “women for pleasure” yu:jo in the Yoshiwara quarter of the Edo period. It describes the concept of female attractiveness in the last shogunate era in Japan and describes cosmetic procedures in the context of the concept about the body beauty. The author focuses on individual parts of the body and their transformation: teeth, nails, hair, feet, etc. The article provides examples of such transformations as blackening teeth o-haguro, staining nails and whitening the face with a special composition of o-shiroi. It also describes the rituals common in the pleasure quarters of the Edo period, in which some parts of the body are involved: swearing an oath of love and fidelity by chopping off a finger, gifting nails and locks of hair, etc. The author analyzes popular images that visitors to the Yoshiwara were inspired by during the Edo period.
About the Author
A. A. Bakhvalova
Ural Federal University (UrFU)
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Anastasiya A. Bakhvalova, master’s student
51, Lenina Av., Ekaterinburg, 620075
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Review
For citations:
Bakhvalova A.A. “Slit eyes and hook nose”. The beauty standards of the Yoshiwara Yu:jo during the Edo period. Studia Religiosa Rossica: Russian Journal of Religion. 2022;(1):72-90. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.28995/2658-4158-2022-1-72-90
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