Isabelle Hidair-Krivsky “feminine beauty is bankable”

Beauty contests remain very popular and unleash passions. Why do you think they persist in the 21st?

Beauty pageants persist because they all promote collective identities. Cultural, social, identity, economic and political issues are reflected, and sometimes even exacerbated, in the context of these competitions.

They fascinate because they symbolize our class, gender, racial struggles and relationships of international domination. Professions, phenotypes, cultural affiliations clash.

Beauty is only the vector of these divisions. It meets two objectives. First of all, it aims to confirm the representational role of women because the message sent unconsciously is “even qualified, it is preferable that they meet the standards of beauty if they wish to succeed in society”.

The other objective is to confirm the place of one’s social group in regional, national and international competition. On this point, we must not forget that Western society is capitalist and values ​​competition.

Thus, the candidates for the title of Miss France initially represent the regions, then their social class and their ethnic group. To be convinced of this, just listen to the speeches given at the end of the first selection: they all talk about their regional and cultural origins as well as their involvement in the defense of so-called women’s causes: “health”, “early childhood”. », “violence against women”. Ultimately, they become spokespeople for a value supported by the ideology of progress: that of promoting competition and the market economy.

Feminine beauty is bankable, marketable and we know that a whole marketing strategy will follow this election (beauty products, automobiles, etc.).

Thus, these competitions have assigned virtues with a very specific economic objective. Their economic value explains their success. In addition, the luxury that surrounds the ceremony contributes to the enchantment, maintaining the stereotype of the fairy tale. Therefore, women can even feel guilty for not having dreamed of one day becoming Miss!

The election of the new Miss France, Miss Martinique aged 34, with short hair, 16 years older than the youngest candidate, arouses many comments. Her performance, that of an eloquent and mature woman, would seem to have made the difference more than her beauty. Is this a sign of an evolution of this beauty contest?

Being older does not solve the injunction for women to remain thin, young and desirable. Regularly, photos of female personalities are scrutinized. We count their wrinkles, we observe their weight gain, we consider that they must be discreet about their sexuality after 50 or we congratulate them for still being “acceptable” for their age and we ask them to share their secret of beauty! There is no equivalent treatment with men. Men can age, lose their hair, gain weight without any criticism being expressed. It is male privilege maintained within the hegemonic framework of patriarchal society.

Thus, flattering the age of the new Miss France fits perfectly into the line of stereotypical praise: “she is 34, look how beautiful she is!” “. From then on, all women who do not meet these expectations will be accused of not making an effort to remain beautiful at their age!

Staying beautiful, slim and young, investing time in your body comes at the expense of other activities: less reading, studying, political engagement, for example, all activities which could give access to others environments, and encourage skills development.

Of course, beauty can open up opportunities and promote careers, but they are ephemeral (since youth is!) and do not offer the same opportunities as a career based on lasting criteria (technical skills). It is essential for these winners to acquire knowledge in management, business creation, leadership, or to continue training if they escape the traps of the stereotype of the beautiful, “but incompetent” woman.

Social networks played a big role in this election. Have they become absolutely essential?

Networks are capable of the worst as well as the best. Today, the annual report of the High Council for Equality highlights the return of these conservative injunctions on social networks. Particularly through the success of the trends #tradwife (contraction of the English “traditional” and “wife”) and #stayathomegirlfriend: which can be translated as “traditional wife”, or girlfriend who, like a good housewife, remains at home to take care of the housework. This “emerging trend” values ​​the lifestyle of a married woman, “submissive” to the desires and career of her husband, unemployed and entirely dedicated to her home. As such, more than half of the population still finds it normal or positive that a woman cooks every day for the whole family.

Therefore, in the Netherlands after 35 years of existence, the beauty pageant stops to become a new platform dedicated to mental health and the sharing of positive stories. Likewise, some countries are warning about the dangers of using beauty filters available on applications.

Networks must continue their regulatory efforts, but with artificial intelligence we remain locked in our bubbles because only information that matches our interests is offered to us as soon as we click on a page. This divided world, by age, by gender, by ethnicity, by political ideology leads us to a binary vision “for/against”. However, the world and ideas are very nuanced. Let’s learn to always compare versions, to verify our information and to qualify our words.

Who is the most beautiful ? That is the question ?

Well, instead of attacking the networks with conspiracy theories, we could answer: « everyone has their own taste ! ».