Society has set certain stereotypes to girls and women about what it is considered to be beautiful that girl’s focus more in their appearances than in their internal selves. Every girl deserves to feel beautiful because they all are, but how can girls think that they are beautiful if there is always that constant reminder of what being considered beautiful is. It is often seen on TV various shows where little girls are being judged by the way they walk, turn, how their makeup and hair is done and what they are wearing, and obviously their beauty. Society has set such high standards of what is considered beautiful and girls are being the victims of those standards. Girls now feel that they are not beautiful enough because they do not meet those standards such as height, weight, body, skin color, and many more characteristics. There are so many repercussions in participating in Beauty Pageants because girls are being judged in how they look that it makes them be more conscious of what society thinks of them. Beauty Pageants cause cognitive and emotional problems in the long run.
Little girls are now more concerned about developing their external looks than their internal selves. For a lot of girls what matters the most is how they look on the outside because that is what society is judging (Agadoni). Girls feel that they need to meet all of the standards that society has set in order to be considered beautiful, so they try hard to achieve that amazing body, their skin has to be perfectly tanned, they even starve themselves to achieve the weight and body they need to enter competition. Girls spend so much time trying to hard to achieve a superficial look instead of focusing on what is really important such as their internal beauty a...
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...tant pressure they and their moms put in them so they can compete and win tittles in there pageants. Moms sometimes don’t take in consideration that girls are too young and they expose them to items that make little girls looks way older, making them seem sexualized at such a young age. All girls are beautiful in their own way and they shouldn’t be judged by the way they walk, turn or the way their make up or hair is done. Girls should focus more on their internal self because they already are beautiful on the outside.
Works Cited
Agadoni, Laura. "How Do Child Beauty Pageants Affect a Child's Development?" Everyday Life. Global Post, n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2013
"5 Reasons Child Pageants Are Bad for Kids - The Week." The Week. N.p., 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 30 Oct. 2013.
Malmsio, Helene. "Child Beauty Pageants Pros and Cons." Squidoo. N.p., 15 Feb. 2012. Web. 30 Oct. 2013.
Rapport, Lisa J. "Child Beauty Pageants: The Real Story Behind the Glitz." Child Beauty Pageants: The Real Story Behind the Glitz. N.p., 30 May 2011. Web. 20 Mar. 2014.
...as Miss USA and Miss Universe are competitions intended for mature, self-assured women who are capable of making their own decisions. Child beauty pageants, however, ruin childhoods and force them to grow up believing in their looks, rather than in themselves. It is no surprise, that emotional distress plagues the contestants that participate in beauty long after stepping off of the stage; subjecting young girls of any age to judgment and ridicule is not only humiliating but horrific to think that we are sitting back being entertained by their competitive nature. Rather than raising strong, confident girls who want to achieve the best in life; the parents and the hosts of these competitions provide a platform on which little girls are dressed up as skimpy Barbie dolls and paraded around, trying to achieve some form of perfection that shouldn’t exist in little girls.
One professional psychologist and registered dietician has warned that competing in the beauty pageants may lead young girls to feel that the approval and love of their parents is based solely on their looks and whether they win a crown at the pageant or not. Losing in a pageant category may generate lower feelings of self-worth in young children who do not know how to properly cope with loss at such a young age. Additionally, there are countless examples of women who as children participated in beauty pageants and began stressing at a young age while attempting to maintain an impossible ideal of perfection. Many of the young girls who cannot keep up a perfect look will begin to feel body shame, depression and may even develop an eating disorder. In fact, one study was done on approximately 130 females who had participated in beauty pageants.
Schultz, Kristen, and Ann Pleshette Murphy. "Beauty Pageants Draw Children and Criticism." ABC News. ABC News Network, n.d. Web. 15 May 2014.
Child beauty pageants have been a part of American society since the 1960’s. These pageants consist of modeling swimwear, evening attire, dance and talent. The young children entered in the pageants are judged on perfection, confidence, capability and looks. Judges would call this “the complete package.” Children are divided into different age groups to make the pageants fair. They are guided by there parents who spend well over 200 dollars for the pageants. Money is spent on fake nails, hair extensions, makeup, clothing, eyebrow waxing, and anything else their parents are willing to do to make their child the best looking. Keep in mind that these little girls range from ages 1-12. The issues with these pageants are that these extremely young girls are beginning to compare themselves to other “prettier” girls, which leads to negative effects in the future.
Beauty pageants have caused an increase in mental and physical issues in young girls who participate. Participation and competition for a beauty prize where infants and girls are objectified and judged against sexualized ideals can have significant mental health and developmental consequences that impact detrimentally on identity, self-esteem, and body perception ("We must protect our kids from the catwalk of shame."). If young girls don't win, they might take it personally and get hurt feelings. The child might end up feeling unattractive or inadequate ("Child Beauty Pageants Pros and Cons.") which can lead to the development of disorders such as bulimia or anorexia. ("How Do Child Beauty Pageants Affect a Child's Development?") These are both eating disorders girls develop to lose weight excessively. Furthermore, the average BMI of a beauty pageant contestant as of 2010 is 18.3 (Beauty Pageant Statistics), which is classified as underweight...
Lights, camera, pouty lips welcome to the four dimensional world of children 's beauty pageants. Over the years, child pageants have become a hot topic gaining a great deal of delight from numerous people around the world. From having a strong standing, ongoing fan base that keeps the hit TLC TV show Toddlers and Tiaras; on air to having some of Americans ' favorite beauty queens making guest appearances on shows such as the Ellen Show. Regretfully, the idea of putting an end to child pageants has become somewhat of a hotter topic than the pageants themselves. People often put down what they do not understand why dress a child like that? Why all the make-up? What some do not seem to understand is that there are advantages to being a beauty
When one looks back at their childhood, what pops into their head? For most people their response would be playing with dolls, going outside, or having sleepovers, but for others that isn’t reality. Britney, an eight-year old girl from California, spent her childhood getting Botox and competing in child beauty pageants. According to her mother, Britney had been complaining about wrinkles and agreed to trying Botox. This sounds absolutely crazy, but it is not uncommon. Over 250,000 kids participate in beauty pageants each year (Lindsey). These children, who start competing as early as age 2, are being judged on their looks, capability, perfection, and confidence. The controversies over these pageants have erupted in the past few years because of TLC’s reality show, Toddlers and Tiaras (Nussbaum). Many believe it is not right for young children to parade around on stage wearing make-up and inappropriate clothing, while others believe it builds confidence in children. Despite what people who are pro child beauty pageants say, these pageants can have major effects on the kids participating in them. One may argue that these girls gain much more than they lose, but in the end the negative affects far outweigh the positives.
" In the end, children’s beauty pageants are essentially harmful to both young girls safety and minds. It may not happen to some, but most of the young girls that compete in beauty pageants seem to have a bit of an attitude towards their parents and other people who will not cooperate with them.... ... middle of paper ... ...
Issues regarding the purpose of beauty pageants alarm women since majority of the beauty pageants are for them. Let us look at the good side of beauty pageants. First, allows the use...
Child beauty pageants have changed so much since the 1960’s. Children beauty pageants used to be about the children and having fun. Now, it seems like most children are being forced in these pageants by their parents, looking unnoticeable from all the heavy makeup they wear, fake hair, teeth and nails they use. Children being abuse, sexualize, having self-esteem problems etc in these pageants. Many people have questioned this sport and wonder if it should be ban? In this paper, I have augured and provided facts and information on why children beauty pageants should be ban.
In the article, “5 Reasons Child Pageants are Bad for Kids” exclaims, “Just look at the growing number of ‘school girls as young as 8 wear padded bras, high heels, or makeup, and strike suggestive poses. ’Really, what is this telling our children about how they present themselves to society.” The standard of glamour forced by child beauty pageants is unheard of. Children that have not hit puberty yet should not be worried about wearing makeup, padded bras, or high heels. Children especially should not gain the implication that striking suggestive poses is okay, but child beauty pageants put this implication in their brain.
Many young girls are forced to wear preposterous outfits and enormous amounts of makeup that deny them of their innocence at a young age. Beauty contests are meant more for adult women who are mature enough to understand all that’s going on and can handle losing competitions to the other contestants. Children should not be able to compete in pageants because of the harmful effects on self-confidence and character. Some people think they are good and some do not agree that they are good. (Leo, 2014)
Today there are many new extracurricular activities that occupy a lot of young Americans minds. One trending activity is beauty pageants. It is more common in children where the ages may vary between eight months and even older. The trending debate is whether or not beauty contest serve any purpose in society. While many Americans feel as though pageants are helpful to a child’s self esteem, many feel that the effects of the contest have a very harsh effect on child development by devaluing a child. Researchers have found that beauty contests are effective for women to help make platforms for their careers and also create new jobs for women to create like mentoring children.
Beauty pageants have long been a form of entertainment, exhibiting beautiful women with ideal bodies competing with their talent and their looks. Many pageant moms involve their daughters in children’s pageants to help them improve their social skills, exercise their talents, and boost their self-esteem. Although the pageants may seem like harmless competition with benefits, research shows that they may be doing the young beauty queens more harm than good. “...the girls are receiving conflicting messages: In order to win, the girls must show a unique personality, but they must also act and dress in a hyper feminine manner and conform to the pageant world 's ideal standard of beauty and narrow set of conventions.” (University of Kansas,