Caroline Zielinski
archillesBeauty Competitions
January 8th 2009 03:37
I was just reading the Age today, and under the Lifestyle and Beauty sections, I spotted the new Miss World, Russian 20-year-old Kseniya Sukhinova. Blond, blue eyed, slim and tall, she is just the person many would expect to be crowned as the most beautiful in this world. With her long hair falling down her back in artificial curls, and her tanned legs going on for years, the new Miss World is, in fact, yet another clichéd example of how our culture rewards those born with good genes above those born with other less, er, obvious talents.
Reading on, I noticed that the article made specific mention of her budding career in science and engineering, also focusing on the contestant's stint with wildlife, that is, donning T-shirts and sneakers instead of embellished gowns and glittering high heels, and bravely trampling into Africa's 'unknown' to view lions and tigers and other dangers. Oh, and they also slept in huts and cooked traditional Zulu meals. How wonderful, talented and at one with nature.
What gets to me the most with these pageants is not that they're about beauty as such; it is the fact that the organisers have long since realised that to display female beauty so blatantly in this day and age is sexual objectification, and in order to mask that faux pas, they have decided to include aspects of environmental awareness, 'special' talents and the contestant's educational background, making the contest thus far more all rounded. Naturally, this is all mostly a facade, engineered to veer off criticism while still continuing to indulge in showing women off in tiny bikinis, all the while pledging to rid the world of hunger and single handedly give every child a chance at a decent life. Please.
So really, it is this hypocricy surrounding Miss World/ Universe that's most annoying, because deep down, we all know that the audience nor the producers really care about the deeds, interests and educational/ professional aspirations of these women. All anyone cares about is whether they have a pert bottom, toned stomach and killer legs, paired with big (insert colour) eyes, a pouting lip and long, glossy hair. As long as they're youthful and beautiful, everything else is irrelevant; and thus, the world goes on in much the same way as always.
Reading on, I noticed that the article made specific mention of her budding career in science and engineering, also focusing on the contestant's stint with wildlife, that is, donning T-shirts and sneakers instead of embellished gowns and glittering high heels, and bravely trampling into Africa's 'unknown' to view lions and tigers and other dangers. Oh, and they also slept in huts and cooked traditional Zulu meals. How wonderful, talented and at one with nature.
What gets to me the most with these pageants is not that they're about beauty as such; it is the fact that the organisers have long since realised that to display female beauty so blatantly in this day and age is sexual objectification, and in order to mask that faux pas, they have decided to include aspects of environmental awareness, 'special' talents and the contestant's educational background, making the contest thus far more all rounded. Naturally, this is all mostly a facade, engineered to veer off criticism while still continuing to indulge in showing women off in tiny bikinis, all the while pledging to rid the world of hunger and single handedly give every child a chance at a decent life. Please.
So really, it is this hypocricy surrounding Miss World/ Universe that's most annoying, because deep down, we all know that the audience nor the producers really care about the deeds, interests and educational/ professional aspirations of these women. All anyone cares about is whether they have a pert bottom, toned stomach and killer legs, paired with big (insert colour) eyes, a pouting lip and long, glossy hair. As long as they're youthful and beautiful, everything else is irrelevant; and thus, the world goes on in much the same way as always.
| 103 |
| Vote |
Comments (5)
Add Comments
Read More
