What comes to mind when you are asked “what do you consider beauty”? What do you think of when someone asks “what is beauty”? Google “beauty contests UK” and you’ll find nearly 18,000,000 hits in just 0.50 seconds. The beauty pageants are a hot topic, but does this information make it good?
The idea that a young person should aspire to a white smile, an expensive outfit, and a perfect body is a lie. It teaches them to dislike themselves because they do not look like Miss Universe.
Beauty pageants have always been based on beauty, even though there are now sections for charity or community. A beauty contest is primarily concerned with how someone appears and dresses, as well as their overall presentation. Personal accomplishments and intelligence are less important than how the contestants are perceived by others. Pageants are superficial. They create unrealistic expectations and failure for the contestants. Pageant judges set a bar that no one can ever reach.
In this way, beauty contests and other ‘competitions,’ which judge people according to how close to perfection they are, can be directly linked with unhappiness. The fact that they don’t look like the models in magazines or the winners of beauty pageants may prevent them from feeling comfortable in themselves. They are judged harshly for this. We as individuals may not notice the beauty standards that we see in our daily lives. However, that doesn’t mean they are wrong. Beauty pageants may not change this, but they do not make it less common or disappear.
Children under six can also experience the worlds of spray-tans, makeup and big hair. In most cases, parents will put pressure onto their children to enter beauty pageants. According to “The child-pageant-queens who grew-up”, mothers hire make up artists just to put make-up on the faces of their daughters. It is not their decision, but their parents.
Some parents enter their children in these competitions because they believe it will help them build self-esteem. In fact, they may even claim that their kids want to participate. Although many girls want to play the role of princess when they are younger, they shouldn’t be performing on a large stage in a public place.
In these events, girls will often appear on stage in skimpy clothing with their faces covered in make-up. They will also make pouty faces while shaking their bums. It is not only inappropriate, but it can also sexualize girls and make them act like someone they’re not. Free events such as pageants can put young girls at risk of being sexualized by people watching.
Young girls and boys are also exposed to intense pressures when competing fiercely. Incorrectly handled, it can lead a young child to feel that they have failed miserably. Children who enter beauty contests so young are subjected to strict schedules that can prevent them from enjoying their childhood and learning valuable lessons.
Children are forced to endure hours of makeup, shopping trips for clothes, inappropriate heels, physical training (even though their bodies are still developing), multiple visits to pageant coaches to repeat the same routine, and harsh criticism from parents. Are all of these things and more worth a few crowns and some cash? Does this teach life lessons to children, how to respect others and live their lives?
Everyone’s perception of beauty is different. There is no standard for what defines a beautiful person. Beauty pageants set unrealistic expectations on competitors, who believe that if the judge doesn’t find them thin or physically perfect, they will select someone more beautiful.
Psychologists found in 2008 that people who have participated in beauty pageants are more dissatisfied with their bodies than those who don’t. These extreme contests cause mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, and eating disorder. A anonymous survey evaluated the self-esteem of 131 female contestants at American beauty pageants, their diets, and their body image. An anonymous survey revealed that 26% of women were told they had an eating problem, which began when they were 16 and 25 years old. Nearly half (48.5%) of women reported that they wanted to look thinner. 57% said that they were trying to lose some weight, even though their bodies were in excellent shape.
Some view the body shape and image as a ‘idea’, believing that winning a contest is based solely on physical appearance. Plus-size girls are discouraged from competing in pageants. Plus-sized women and girls will not be able fit into the wardrobes of many pageants. Is it helpful or harmful to lose 30 lbs to fit into the pageant dress? Beauty pageants are solely based on outer beauty, no matter what the judge may say.
Women and girls often transform into the perfect image they believe is best. They can resemble dolls or Barbie. These competitions harm women and girls around the world by promoting unrealistic expectations. Beauty pageants make women second-guess their appearance and what they want to become in the future.
Beauty pageants are harmful to women and can lead them down a path of depression, eating disorder, or even cosmetic surgery. Parents manipulate young girls by teaching them to wear fake teeth with make-up, and to smile a false smile. Beauty pageants do not have to be all glamour and glitz. It’s about time they stopped.
