¿Cómo construir la mujer ideal? Un estudio de la imagen de mujer a partir de los cánones estéticos y morales en la Medellín en camino a la modernidad (1900 – 1929)

Abstract

This paper aims to analyze how the feminine ideal was constructed in the city of Medellin between 1900 and 1929. It also seeks to understand what aspects make up this ideal and how they are classified in aesthetic or moral issues. To achieve this, it relies on articles published in the magazines Letras y Encajes and Cromos, as well as the Manual de Urbanidad y buenas costumbres written by Manuel Antonio Carreño. The article is the product of an ongoing research, and the ideal of woman found responds to three important aspects: 1) it is inherited from the nineteenth century, 2) it is of foreign origin and 3) it is strongly contradictory. Furthermore, in the research and in this paper, three factors have been found to be relevant: urbanity, hygiene, and fashion.