I confess that I went to the pageant fully expecting to hate it. Even on my way to the event my friend said, "Now you be nice to those girls!"
In spite of myself, I actually had a good time. The last time I had seen a pageant must have been when I was a child and wasn't really sure what to expect. I had a running commentary on Twitter throughout the pageant. However, what I most definitely did not expect was how dressed up everyone else was in the audience. I felt too casual among cocktail dresses and strappy heels with my, it must be confessed, dungarees. I didn't think that for many attendees, that this would be a big event for them too, something that perhaps they wished to participate in someday.
I thoroughly enjoyed the talent competition forgetting how much I loved opera and ballet. I continued to enjoy the so-called physical fitness competition. Slightly horrified and dismayed with evening wear and I realized, this was awesome! I got to see very talented, sexy women in many different outfits in a matter of hours! Then came the Q&A and I was incredibly disappointed. The questions were great: how do you see the role of women changing? How has the recession effected you? The answers? Pure drivel. But they are tough questions that could occupy the space of a thesis and I too would be hard-pressed to give an excellent answer in a few minutes.
Several questions plagued me during this event. Why is this an event only for women? I can't imagine men competing this way and I realize it's because they don't have to. Should we continue to objectify ourselves for the sake of scholarship money? Should we perpetuate the ideal that women should be talented, sexy and smart? What is the fetish equivalent?
At the end of the night, I told my date I sure had a swell time. He responded a little too quickly, I can get us tickets for Miss America in Las Vegas!
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