Look at my ugly face! : myths and musings on beauty and other perilous obsessions with women's appearance
(Book)

Includes bibliographical references (pages 319-332) and index.

"Look at my ugly face!" was the exclamation of a Chinese Taoist as she presented her newly scarred face to her teacher after he had pronounced her beauty an obstacle to enlightenment. She is a startling example of a refusal to accept superficial limitations. Women of all cultures, ages, and ethnicities are haunted by myths of appearance. But, argues therapist and scholar Sara Halprin, these myths are more than patriarchal prison bars: they can be the gateway to freedom. Exploring the links between appearance and identity and power, she shows how women can enter a complex and creative interplay between roles of beauty and ugliness--each with magical powers--that reaches far back to the archetype of the triple Goddess. This work resounds with the voices of the author and other contemporary women concerned with appearance, aging, spirituality, and reclaiming identity. Its penetrating insights based on Jung's psychology and on multicultural myths, and supported by images drawn from popular culture, make the book a unique and compelling journey into the world of beauty, ugliness, and transformation. --,From book jacket.