Should Beauty Pageants for Underage Girls Be Discontinued

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Recommended: Ethics of beauty pageants

According to Bloul (2012, p. 4) exploitation in the modern world is one of the major problems affecting the society. There are various kinds of exploitation in the world today, including sweatshop working, slavery, and trafficking among others. Money is said to be the main reason for all kinds of exploitation in the modern world. Make-up, teased hairstyles, hair extensions, flippers (fake teeth), clouds of hairspray, sophisticated costumes, weird postures, screaming crowds (mostly mothers), twitched face expressions, trophies, tiaras, and money are the main ingredients for the beauty pageants for underage girls, along with hysterical crying, exercised smiles and outbursts. There is an increasing debate as to whether beauty pageants for underage girls fall under the category of exploitation or generally an ethical issue in the modern society. It is for this reason that France has led way towards the banning beauty pageants for underage girls. The question as to whether other countries such as the United States should follow in the trend to ban them is the focus of this paper, and the anger is yes. This paper provides evidence for the argument that beauty pageants for underage girls should be discontinued because they are exploitative.

Argument in support of thesis
The senate in France has recognized the negative side of the beauty pageants for underage girls and moved a motion to ban them (Nick, 2013, p. 12). Various reasons in support of this move will be discussed in this paper. One of the main reasons for the support of the move by the country and for the need for the same to be done in other countries, as argued by Latham (1995, p. 150), is the ‘hypersexualization’ of the children. It is a fact that such activities make chil...

... middle of paper ...

...arrwright, Martina M. "Princess By Proxy: What Child Beauty Pageants Teach Girls About Self-Worth And What We Can Do About It." Journal Of The American Academy Of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 51.11 (2012): 1105-1107.
Grosaru, Lucia. Toddlers and children beauty pageants – Risk factors for severe psychological turmoils, psychology corner, 2009. Available http://psychologycorner.com/toddlers-and children-beauty-pageants-%E2%80%93-risk-factors-for-severe-psychological-turmoils/
Latham, Angela J. "Packaging Woman: The Concurrent Rise Of Beauty Pageants, Public Bathing, And Other Performances Of Female "Nudity." Journal Of Popular Culture 29.3 (1995): 149-167.
Nick, Bramhill. "France bans contests for girls in lipstick and heels." Daily Mail 19 Sept. 2013: 12.
Tice, Karen W. "Queens Of Academe: Campus Pageantry And Student Life." Feminist Studies 31.2 (2005): 250-283.

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