From an early age gender is
assigned to males and females in life binding forms by way of blue and
pink. Gender is the social and
cultural meaning tied into individual’s biological sexual differences. This gender is the construction of
masculine and femininity and how it is portrayed through society. The role as a male and female are
visualized through our social interactions. What we do with our gender is up to us. We are thought to become someone in
particular through the eyes of society, but this might not be who we really are
on the inside. To see these
stereotypes being challenged creating a different “norm” is what makes the
television show Toddlers and Tiaras so famous. Toddlers and Tiaras, a hit reality
show aired on TLC, shows these gender norms creating controversy. Male to even female stereotypes are
being contradicted in this series, showing the audience that anyone can do what
they set their minds to. Mother’s
that create a certain image in their child’s mind on what a “woman” should look
like, or even the fact that boys should not be in a beauty pageant, are aspects
that truly make me question the aspects of gender stereotypes.
One
of the most controversial aspects about this reality show is the fact that
children are being taught about living up to this status of being the “perfect”
person. Female stereotypes are so
strongly portrayed in this show. Women
have the role to marry and have children, finding time to be sexy and beautiful
on the side. “To me, it seems
that this is merely an effort to teach the girls how to be a
"successful" girl, not only through the exhibition of what a
“feminine” physical appearance, but also the idea of “success” defined by
victory, and that one can use their “femininity” and physical appeal to do so,”
(Kimchii). Mothers are now showing
their daughters at early ages what it takes to be viewed as beautiful and to fulfill
this stereotype. This should not
be the case. “They should be shocked, not only at her talent, but at the little girls
who wear seductive clothing and dance suggestively in pursuit of a crown. Some parents describe pageants as a sport, but
that’s a way to deflect criticism and compare pageants to Little League. In Little League, they keep score based on
runs. In pageants,
they keep score based on twirls and hair height” (Media Criticism). The stress of putting the pressure on
these little girls does seem harsh, but they enjoy it! They might not fully understand what is
going on at the time; they just see how proud their parents are of them when
they win. Most of the girls live
by double standards. When they are
home they are tomboys and when they get to the pageants they become a
“beautiful princess.” This to me
changes the aspect of a certain stereotype toward pageant girls that is
acceptable to the audience.
However when a male enters the competition most of the
time they are looked down upon because of the image of Hegemonic
masculinity, which is a culture’s general consensus over what it means to be a
man. A lot of pageants do not
allow men to enter the competition.
Men are not supposed to be in beauty pageants. They are supposed to be assertive, competitive, independent,
courageous, and career focused.
Most of the audience gets the impression that if a guy is in the
competition then they must possess feminine traits, such as being classified as
gay. For example, Brock, a little
boy that competed in the competition against many other women. “Brock calls himself a “diva” and likes to compete
in pageants. Since contests for boys are in short supply, Brock sometimes competes
against girls. And he wins” (Queerty).
Just because he is a boy does not mean that he feels inferior to the
other girls. He obviously can do
way better than them when it comes down to the competition. The fact that this shows demonstrates
that the male stereotype can be contradicted shows the audience that no matter
who you are, set your mind toward your dreams and go after them. Just because Brock is a boy does NOT
mean that he should not be able to join the girls showing off his personality
and being proud of whom he is. I
think that is the best part about this show. No matter who you are, where you come from, or what you want
to do, you can show your personality and beauty through pageants. It is a way of expression. People should be able to show
themselves with out criticism or living up to some silly stereotype that
society created.
Overall
the show Toddlers and Tiaras is highly controversial and double sided. The gender rolls are changed throughout
creating diversity to the audience so they can see all aspects of the
competition and drama. I truly
think the only point to this show is to show people that pageants cost a lot of
money and are filled with unneeded drama leading to the result of who has the
best looking child.
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