Guilty Pleasures
Abstract
This thesis is a collection of poems that explores the confines and expansions of young femininity. Working within a “gurlesque” style of poetry, Guilty Pleasures comments on the razzle-dazzle of beauty pageants, the stickiness of new love, and the witchy mysticism of being a woman. Underlying the glitz and glam is constraint. Present here are the literal constraints of poetic form, as well as the corset-like bondages of womanhood; the tightness of a zipped dress, feeling trapped like a princess in a tower. Sure, maybe she can’t move so freely…but doesn’t she look so good?
Description
This thesis has been embargoed for 10 years. It will not be available until May 2030 at the earliest.
Keywords
Poetry, Miss America, Women, Beauty pageant, Gurlesque, Feminist