The ugly history of beautiful things : essays on desire and consumption
In these deeply researched essays, a Paris Review contributor blends science, history, and memoir to explore human obsession with gorgeous things, exposing the fraught histories of makeup, silk, jewels, perfume, and other objects, helping readers to ethically partake in the beauty of the world around them.
Available Copies by Location
| Location | |
|---|---|
| Community Centre | Available |
Browse Related Items
- ISBN: 9781982179359 (hardcover)
- Physical Description x, 262 pages ; 24 cm
- Edition First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.
Content descriptions
| Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
Additional Information
The Ugly History of Beautiful Things : Essays on Desire and Consumption
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Table of Contents
The Ugly History of Beautiful Things : Essays on Desire and Consumption
| Section | Section Description | Page Number |
|---|---|---|
| Introduction | 1 | |
| 1 | The Mercurial Charms of the Mirror | |
| On seeing and being seen | 11 | |
| 2 | Mouth Full of Petals, Veins Full of Wax | |
| On stealing, eating, praying, and playing with powers | 25 | |
| 3 | Bright Blues, Cursed Cuts | |
| On gemstones, worry stones, and her majesty the diamond | 47 | |
| 4 | Spiraling | |
| On the ancient appeal of shells, pearls, and mollush-made wonders | 77 | |
| 5 | Live Fast, Die Pretty | |
| On wearing war paint, faces full of lead, and the makeup of makeup | 97 | |
| 6 | Dirty, Sweet, Floral, Foul | |
| The rank backstory of perfumery | 121 | |
| 7 | Women and Worms | |
| The prismatic sheen of silk and its fairy-tale logic | 145 | |
| 8 | Deceptions and Damnation | |
| The molten glow of screens, the beauty of stained glass, and the treachery of spectacles | 169 | |
| 9 | Bone White, Paper Thin | |
| On porcelain dishes, pale faces, and the complicated act of setting a table | 183 | |
| 10 | The Exhalations of the Earth | |
| On marble statues, engineered stones, white lungs, and small lambs | 203 | |
| Conclusion | 225 | |
| Acknowledgments | 231 | |
| Notes | 233 | |
| Index | 249 |
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