A Feeling of Belonging: Asian American Women's Public Culture, 1930-1960 (American History and Culture, 3)

When we imagine the activities of Asian American women in the mid-twentieth century, our first thoughts are not of skiing, beauty pageants, magazine reading, and sororities. Yet, Shirley Jennifer Lim argues, these are precisely the sorts of leisure practices many second generation Chinese, Filipina, and Japanese American women engaged in during this time. In A Feeling of Belonging , Lim highlights the cultural activities of young, predominantly unmarried Asian American women from 1930 to 1960. This period marks a crucial generation—the first in which American-born Asians formed a critical mass and began to make their presence felt in the United States. Though they were distinguished from previous generations by their American citizenship, it was only through these seemingly mundane ''American'' activities that they were able to overcome two-dimensional stereotypes of themselves as kimono-clad ''Orientals.'' Lim traces the diverse ways in which these young women sought claim to cultural citizenship, exploring such topics as the nation's first Asian American sorority, Chi Alpha Delta; the cultural work of Chinese American actress Anna May Wong; Asian American youth culture and beauty pageants; and the achievement of fame of three foreign-born Asian women in the late 1950s. By wearing poodle skirts, going to the beach, and producing magazines, she argues, they asserted not just their American-ness, but their humanity: a feeling of belonging. A Feeling Of Belonging : Chi Alpha Delta, 1928-1941 -- I Protest : Anna May Wong And The Performance Of Modernity -- Shortcut To Glamour : Popular Culture In A Consumer Society -- Contested Beauty : Asian American Beauty Culture During The Cold War -- Riding The Crest Of An Oriental Wave : Foreign-born Asian Beauty. Shirley Jennifer Lim. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 191-230) And Index. Contents......Page 6 Preface......Page 8 Introduction......Page 12 1. “ A Feeling of Belonging”......Page 22 2. “ I Protest”......Page 58 3. Shortcut to Glamour......Page 98 4. Contested Beauty......Page 132 5. Riding the Crest of an Oriental Wave......Page 166 6. Conclusion......Page 200 Notes......Page 202 Index......Page 242 About the Author......Page 252