Ear Plugs: Explore Collections: Windows to the World: Digital Artifacts for Global Educators: Indiana University Bloomington

Ear Plugs

What do tattoos, makeup, piercings, shapewear, and Instagram filters all have in common? All of these devices are used by people to alter their appearance to better fit a beauty standard that has been set by culture. Different cultures have different ideas of what makes a person beautiful. These standards often encourage people to alter their bodies to better fit the society’s understanding of beauty. While some alterations may seem more extreme than others, it is important to note that the cultural perspective you come from influences your perception of what is “normal.”

Two short ivory forms, cylindrical in shape with slightly concave edges, and each with a wide hole running through the middle. The surface of both is very smooth.

In this photo, we see earplugs from the Samburu people, an ethnic group living in Kenya. Earplugs go in the lower portion of the ear and create a hole. This is similar to an ear piercing, but the earring goes in the pierced hole and stretches the earlobe. In Samburu culture, these earplugs are worn by warriors and young men. They are traditionally carved from ivory, but may also be made of plastic in modern times. While earplugs may seem strange to a culture that does not use them, they are not much different than earrings. From a global perspective this is merely another example of a culture’s understanding of beauty.

Resources

Resource 1

Is Beauty in the Eyes of the Colonizer?- NPR

NPR’s Leah Donnella discusses how notions of beauty have been shaped by legacies of colonialism and white supremacy. Examining historical and persistent ideas which orient beauty around “perfectly” constructed white ideals, Donnella offers insight as to how people, particuarly people who are not white, can change their ways of thinking about beauty. Donnella engages critical race scholars and cites historical movements such as Black is Beautiful to challenge prevailing beauty standards which marginalize many people and communities.

Resource 2

Ivory: Significance and Protection- Smithsonian National Museum of African Art

Ivory is one of the most valued artistic materials in the world. This website details the significance of ivory in various cultures, focusing primarily on African cultures (and providing proverbial evidence for ivory’s importance in various African societies). However, ivory is a highly contentious material. Since the 19th century and the advent of European colonization of Africa, the demand for ivory has greatly reduced the population of elephants across the continent.

In addition to discussing the significance of ivory, this website explains how museums engage with ivory in their collections, as well as efforts to combat the international trade of ivory.

Resource 3

Married Woman's Lower Lip Plug- Eskenazi Museum of Art

Ear plugs and lip plugs are just some of the forms of body modification practiced in contemporary Africa. Scarification, the practice of intentionally carving patterns or designs in the skin, is also widely practiced. Though such kinds of body modification may initally appear very distinct and different from practices in the West, they are nonetheless forms of conveying meaning and beauty through the body. People in the United States commonly use pircings and tattoos are commonly used in the United States to do the same.

Ear Plugs

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