Is Whiter, Better?

In class recently, we've spoken about consumerism and how telenovelas can transcend time through their popularity. Telenovelas create epic love stories that people remember, decades after the show has ended. To me, this speaks to how big of an effect telenovelas can have on millions of people. In my last blog post, I wrote about how telenovelas are impacted by societal ideas of gender and conforming to gender norms. Telenovelas have such a big reach that I feel the subtle messages within these programs are something to be looked at and considered. Things like how gender and race are portrayed in television are extremely important, especially for shows with large audiences, because it impacts how people perceive characteristics of themselves. As I've begun to watch Juana La Virgen, I've noticed how there aren't as many connections between people of darker skin and negative personality traits as I would expect. There are of course a few exceptions to this, like Desiree being the only woman who is more morena and also kind of being the villain. All the other women in the show are very light, or have light eyes, or some combination of both, but Desiree is the only one who is darker skinned with dark features. Though this may not be overtly intentional, like many things, it can still have a negative effect on young women of color, who only see themselves as villains in popular media. Not to mention, having a darker woman play a slightly evil seductress happens relatively frequently among different telenovelas. In Lo Que La Vida Me Robo, the main female antagonist is a darker skinned, beautiful woman who tries to seduce the male lead. Similarly, in Teresa, the female villain often wears dark eye makeup and has dark hair, even if she's not darker skinned. 

Throughout a variety of telenovelas from different time periods, there is an association created between having dark features and being the evil/malevolent character. This, I think, is a reflection of what people in Latinoamérica think of being darker skinned. There is still a lot of colorism, especially in older generations, and being whiter is considered to be a good thing. When I was young, my Abuelita would tell her friends how white I was, and whenever I would meet them in person they would always say,  "Ah I see what you mean Emilia, she's so pretty, she's so white." Funnily enough, I always wanted to be darker so that people would recognize and validate my identity as a Latina. I also think that the connection between being very light and being very attractive or desirable is really ridiculous. In Juana La Virgen, the male lead's wife, Carlota, is supposed to be super attractive and beautiful, but I don't think so at all. She's very light and blonde and whatever, but she looks like she's got a bad nose job and kind of a pinched expression. Desiree on the other hand is drop dead gorgeous. But in the show, when the two women talk about Mauricio, the male lead, cheating on Carlota, Carlota says that would be impossible because there's nobody around as beautiful as she is. It was just something that I questioned when I was watching that particular episode because I was like... in what world is she more beautiful than Desiree? As I continue to watch Juana La Virgen, and we learn about how impactful telenovelas have been in Latin America, I do wonder how these very slight connections between race and "goodness" have impacted darker skinned individuals and their perception of themselves. In lots of popular media and television within Latin America, the leads are never dark or indigenous looking. Personally, I think that this has contributed to the persistence of colorism and colorist ideas within Latin American society today. What must it be like to grow up in a country made up primarily of brown people, yet never see yourself when you turn on the tv?