Preview

Dark Side of Beauty Pageants

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1446 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Dark Side of Beauty Pageants
The Dark Side of Beauty Pageants

With their glamour, expensive dresses, jewels and, big fake smiles, beauty pageant contestants are just hiding their true personalities under materialistic things. People may say that beauty pageants aren’t always about looks. The contestants are scored on beauty, personality, evening wear, athletic wear and over all perception of the contestant. Beauty contestant ages range from 2 years old to 60+ years old. The fact that contestants lie about their beliefs in order to get a good score for their personality and, present stereotypes to the world that young women to develop eating disorders shows that beauty pageants are bad for our society. Beauty pageants have been a cause of eating disorders in many young females for several years. Young females watching these beauty pageants have developed eating disorders to look like the contestants, and compete in pageants with them. Most women who enter into these beauty pageants are slim and in shape. People may say that there are beauty pageants such as Ms. Classic Beauty for plus sized women to participate in, but this just emphasizes the point that they are over weight. Why can’t plus sized women compete with the petite women? Beauty pageant contestants are scored on their beauty, personality, evening wear, and athletic wear. Many women do not want to be seen out of shape for the athletic wear and evening wear, so for a quick diet they will not eat and soon develop some kind of eating disorder. Women do this to slim down quickly or to look like the people in the pageants. People think that to be beautiful they have to weigh 95 lbs, when beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Even though they are scored on their personality, they are also scored on the evening wear, athletic wear and overall beauty which adds up over the contestant’s personality. About 15% of young women have developed eating disorders in which beauty pageants should be blamed. Also the same study shows



Cited: Cromie, Willian J., “The Whys and Woes of Beauty Pageants.” Harvard University Gazette 8 June 2000. 12 June 2009 http://www.news.hardvard.edu/gazette/2000/06.08/beauty.html>. “Editorial: punished for her beliefs.(Editorial).” Augusta Chronicle (Augusta, GA) (April 23, 2009): NA. General OneFile. Gale. Dover Sherborn High School. 13 May 2009. http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS. “Hilton, Miss California takes sides on ‘Today.’” Boston.com. Dated 23 April 2009. Viewed 22 May 2009 http://www.boston.com/ae/celebrity/articles/2009/04/21/hilton_miss_california_take_sides_on_today Klein, Alvin. “THEATER; A Song-and-Dance Sendup of Beauty Pageants.” The New York Times (May 3, 1998): NA. General OneFile. Gale. Dover Sherborn High School. 18 May 2009. Delia,Sarah. Lessons From Miss America. Dated 2 March 2009. Viewed 23 May 2009. Freese J, Meland S. “Seven tenths incorrect: heterogeneity and change in the waist-to-hip ratios of Playboy centerfold models and Miss America pageant winners”. J Sex Res. Dated May 2002. Viewed 25 May 2009. “Stereotyping is leading to terror, says first Muslim Miss England”. Dated 31 August 2006. Viewed 25 May 2009. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-403010/Stereotyping-leading-terror-says-Muslim-Miss-England.html

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Lindsay Lieberman explains how child pageantry causes emotional, physical, and monetary effects on both the competitors and the parents; this is the central claim of “Protecting Pageant Princesses: A Call for Statutory Regulation of Child Beauty Pageants.” Minor claim number one is that pageants can cause detrimental effects on a young woman such as depression, eating disorders, and body image issues that accelerate into lifetime problems. Brook Breedwell competed in pageants as a young child, and she explains that this industry caused her to suffer from stress, anxiety, and body image issues as she was raised in the industry that requires females to be unrealistic. Lieberman also states the minor claim of explain that NC House of Representatives…

    • 323 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Kennedy, David M. and Cohen, Lizabeth and Bailey, Thomas A. The American Pageant: Thirteenth Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company,…

    • 277 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Giroux, H.A. (May 11, 2009). Child Beauty Pageants: A Scene From the "Other America". Truthout| Perspective.…

    • 15602 Words
    • 63 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cited: Kennedy, David M, Lizabeth Cohen, and Thomas A. Bailey. The American Pageant: A History…

    • 581 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    She takes a neutral opinion about beauty pageants and sheds light on some positive effects surrounding beauty pageants as well as the negative on young girls. In the article, she writes about the different types of pageants. The first pageant discussed is one that involves contestants performing a talent and participating in an interview in order to win a prize aimed toward their education, such as a scholarship for college. The second type of pageant talked about is the pageant based only on the physical appearance of the contestant. These types of pageants often do not contain an education prize to the winner. She argues that the second type of pageant objectify young girls and make them believe that only outward beauty is important. She then opposes her statement by saying there is no reason that young girls should be ashamed of flaunting their physically beauty. I think this article has potential to be useful in my paper. It gives both a positive and negative view of beauty…

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Fdr American Hero

    • 3638 Words
    • 15 Pages

    Kennedy, David M., et al. The American Pageant: A History of the Republic. Thirteenth ed.…

    • 3638 Words
    • 15 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Toddlers And Tiaras

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Beauty Pageants can lead to disorders later in life, and learning demanding values. One disorder that beauty pageant causes a psychological problem such as depression and stress. Putting pressure on a child telling them that they have to win and when that does not turn out to be true the kid falls into depression. That’s where the crying and screaming happens. It’s hard being confident knowing you’re going to win, but you loss as a kid it breaks your heart because beauty pageant is all about competition.…

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Annotated Bibliography

    • 482 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Beauty pageants made their first appearances in America during the 1920’s, where women flaunted around casinos, determined to win a crown for their physical attractiveness. The owner of the casino where these activities occurred, figured that this would attract more tourists. Throughout the years, more modern pageants were formed, like Ms. USA and Ms. America. Following in the footsteps of its adult form, child beauty pageants merged into the 1960’s. Child beauty pageants usually consist of modeling sportswear, evening wear, and showing off any special talent they may have. Judges critique the girls individually, based on their physical looks, poise, confidence, and perfection. To the judges, this is called “the complete package.” Although the objective of most child pageants is to build confidence and self-worth, beauty pageants can be considered exploitive to minors by causing them to believe in unrealistic ideas about beauty.…

    • 482 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Beauty pageants often provide psychological problems that can develop as a condition later on in life, and contestants will grow up in a…

    • 1843 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    We live in a society in which demands for equality abound. At some point, the rights and privileges associated with the “perfect” life. At the same time, it seemed that a trend began. Hyphenated Americans began their quest for the apparently ideal lifestyle that had been withheld from them. Women, gays, and lesbians began their own efforts to achieve this same equality outside of gender and sexual preference. And yet, despite it all, the beauty pageant survives.…

    • 1168 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Positives in Pageants

    • 1807 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Is it a way of earning money or throwing it away? Is it a way to build a person up or to tear them down? Is it a way to be a role model or a way to be ridiculed? These questions can most commonly be heard when discussing beauty pageants. There is an ongoing controversy about the benefits or harm that beauty pageants can cause to their contestants. There are two-sides to every controversy, but in the matter of pageants the benefits of entering one easily outweighs the negatives.…

    • 1807 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The saying “Never judge a book by its cover” simply means don’t judge a person based only on appearance; however, in a beauty pageant it is hard to follow that phrase. In many of the glitz pageants, children are seen wearing heavy make up, spray tans, fake eyelashes, hair extensions, and flippers. Having contestants endure in all these beauty changes, demonstrates how natural beauty is not pretty. In Laura Agadoni article “How Do Child Beauty Pageants Affect a Child’s Development?” TV talk show host and psychologist Phil McGraw told pageant moms to explain to their children that a beauty pageant is a fantasy (Agadoni, 2003). McGraw said, “Children can easily believe after competing in pageants that they should concentrate too much on external…

    • 221 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the article “Child Beauty Pageants ‘About Parents Feeling Good, Not Kids’”, a registered dietician named Martina M. Cartwright was interviewed about her pageant experience and she said, “”Everything was based on what these kids look like and the way that children were displayed or dressed. They were fully made up; they looked like adult women, pint-size. They were judged on personality, but none spoke a word.” The statement that these girls are being judged on their personalities, but never speak a single word, truly shows how corrupt these pageants are. Pageants show kids that a person can be beautiful on the outside, but hideous on the inside, and still succeed in life. If kids grow up with the mentality that they can get everything just because they have a pretty face, they will not get very far. Children should be taught that a great personality, and intelligence will help them get what they need, because one day when they’re old, and can’t rely on their looks to get the job done, what will they do? How can people just sit back while these little girls are taught such poor…

    • 699 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This article focuses on the effect of child beauty pageants has on the young girls and sometimes girls participating. Many problems rise from participation such as self-esteem issues and also problems with self-identity. “Education takes a back seat,” says Cartwright, author of the article, presenting another issue. She also concludes that the vigor of these pageants can be too much for these young children and that the parents either don’t care or don’t see it. This article is credible being that it’s written by Martina M. Cartwright, Ph.D., R.D., in Food For Thought. It’s also credible in that the website, Psychology Today, is where the article is found. This website is solely focused on issues in the psychology realm. This source was helpful also providing me with extensive detail and presenting the difference of society’s views and the pageants mom’s views on the topic.…

    • 2645 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Stereotypes In Pageants

    • 2146 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Many girls are put under so much pressure that they face many issues of depression if they don’t win. These reasons are why we need to have an age limit on pageants and not let girls compete in glitz pageants when they are younger. The glitz pageants should only be offered to girls who have had a makeup routine and are old enough to get fake nails, spray tanned, and their legs…

    • 2146 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays