In order to get started writing your paper, I recommend you take some notes. First, what do you already know about beauty pageants? What do you want to know? When looking into whether or not pageants are objectifying, try to find opinions from both sides. Many people who participate in pageants say that it makes them feel good about themselves. Let's not forget that the voices of people who actually participate in these contests are important. On the other hand, some people feel that beauty pageants encourage women to fit into a narrow or unrealistic ideal of beauty. Let's consider the intent of beauty pageants and some of the criticisms on this activity.
Beauty pageants are a type of contest where women enter and compete for an award. The award may be in the form of money, a trophy, or a garment or accessory. Sometimes, multiple forms of the award are given, but all consistently add up to a monetary reward. The basis for judging the contestants is traditionally based on physical beauty standards, but some competitions also consider a woman's "inner beauty." Inner beauty may be measured based on her personality, passions, hobbies, talents, and whether she performs any sort of advocacy or charity work. Some pageants offer a college scholarship as a reward, and in recent years some pageants have moved away from the bikini portion of the contest in favor of a demonstration of skill in public speaking.
One of the biggest criticisms of beauty pageants is that they reward some women for fitting into narrow criteria of what constitutes inner and outer beauty. Depending on the time period and location of the beauty pageant, ideals of beauty are not concrete. What is considered beautiful in one year may be totally different in the next. Invariably, women who do not fit the criteria are excluded for their failure to meet arbitrary standards of beauty.
Many people criticize pageants for upholding racist or ethnocentric ideals of beauty. Historically, women of color have been excluded from participating in pageants for their skin color and/or bone structure. Even in international competitions, such as the Miss Universe pageant, contestants are expected to conform to an ideal of light skin and Anglo-European bone structure. This reinforces the idea that beauty is a very narrow category, yet women should be rewarded for fitting into such a narrow box.
Another criticism is that the "narrow box" of beauty excludes women who have healthy to excess amounts of body fat. In the United States especially, women are expected to be very thin and athletic, with little body fat. This reinforces the idea that women who are fat, curvy, pregnant, chubby, or however else you choose to call it, cannot be beautiful.
When children grow up participating in beauty pageants, it can teach them that their physical beauty (as determined by others) is more important than their personal happiness or comfort. The television program Toddlers and Tiaras has been controversial not just because it shows children participating in beauty pageants, but because a lot of the children don't want to be made to participate in the first place. Many parents do not consider their child's input on whether or not they want to have a spray tan, get their teeth whitened, or wear a wig. This is especially a case of obectification because parents essentially treat their child as a plaything to be decorated and paraded, rather than a person with feelings and other interests.
The biggest critique of beauty pageants is that despite any measure of inner beauty involved, the contests reduce a woman or girl's value down to her physical appearance. Beauty or value in a person is not limited to their physical appearance.
I think it would be a great idea for you to find some testimonies from current and/or past pageant participants. This opens up the opportunity to create citations in your paper and connect the subject to real, lived experiences.
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