Are beauty contests degrading womanhood?

I think beauty is an inferior thing. If anyone has enough talent (other than beauty) then why should we go for his/her external appearance? I personally feels that beauty is in the eye of the person that observing so, I don't believe in exposure but in smartness. By competitions like beauty contest the feel of inferiority in the women is exploring day by day. So it is necessary to go for a real talent which is other than beauty.

Beauty contests do not degrade womanhood. It is how the person watching it depicts a wrong image. Instead of girls wearing minimal clothes n exposing their bodies, they should wear "Sarees" and "Kurtas" where in actual beauty is seen.

In this way you do not have to have a sexy body, a pretty face, a zero size figure or all these sort of things. You just have to know how to carry your self. And I feel men should respect women irrespective of how they behave.

I think Beauty contests are both : a boon and a bane. It all comes down to how you see it. Whether you see it as an opportunity to express yourself or you see it as degradation of your culture. As the saying goes "Beauty lies in the Eyes of the Beholder", 3 judges in a beauty contest cannot brand you as beautiful or ugly, as beauty is truly a matter of how you perceive it. And there's nothing wrong with it!. Society should not define us and our actions (for those who do plan to enter such contests).

Well I think beauty contests offer opportunities for a layman to participate in and also open different avenues. Many smart girls who want to be an actress often don't get chance. These contests also help industries to find out the talented ones and nature the talent. Its really up to ones mind that how to interpret things.

Beauty contests also don't demand of physical exposure, one can show her beauty by traditional dresses, make-ups, different tasks performed by them.

Woman is considered sacred in hinduism and respected more or less in all religions so its men's duty to uplift them without bringing obstacles.

According to me beauty contests are not degrading womanhood. This is opportunity to the woman expressing their views and show their capability but its not for physical appearance it's not a fashion show to show different type of dresses, it's just a test for inner beauty and mental maturity over society. This is not a contest of fairness and beauty of woman it is about inner beauty and fairness of woman. According to me its a total maturity, talent, capability, behavior.

I feel that Beauty Contests are not degrading Womanhood as it give chances to a woman to prove herself in a well defined manner.

They are not only judged according to her color and figure but also on her communication skills, her way of thinking(questions asked by the judge) and her desire of working in the Industry.

Woman can handle anything in a PERFECT manner Perfectly.

In my opinion beauty contests are not degrading the womanhood :

* Every woman can choose it as a career option.

* It is 21st century and today's woman are not born to stay at home, they have the right to show their talent.

* An ordinary girl gets a celebrity status.

* Beauty contests are actually considered as platform to enter the glamorous world of the film industry.

Beauty contests degrade the participants and not ALL women. I completely fail to see the point in competing with other women over something as pointless and superficial and temporary as physical beauty. I feel very very sorry for the contestants. What sad lives they must have to feel the need to be validated in front of the world/country/state etc. By being the most "beautiful" woman in the are. What exactly is the point of this competition? What is being achieved by it? Is it only for entertainment? The hapless contestants feel the entire world is watching THEM when actually they are just fodder for the spectator's idle entertainment. To each his own I say and live and let live. But when the practices of some people become popular and start harming other aspirants. Physically. Mentally. Emotionally. That is when we put our foot down. If we are going to have a contest on beauty why not keep a contest where the winner is the person with the most INNER beauty? Why does that idea not sound as appealing as watching a contest for physical beauty? Thats right. Because the audience doesn't really care about the contestants or what they do or how they contribute to this world. They just want to leer and feast their eyes on beautiful bodies and after the show go home to their spouse and forget about the women altogether.

The topic on the table is are beauty contests degrading womanhood.

It is really a thought provoking topic. I deem it as a honour to break the ice on this.

My friends, to my mind these contests are not degrading womanhood because by these contests women can explore herself, also her confidence increases.

Its world of globalization. It gives platform for women to be a model or actress or both.

Everybody have their own dreams or wishes, it they are participating by her own & her parents wishes, so I don't think anybody have problem for it.

"Degrading womanhood" is definitely not what I would agree to. It implies that the woman does not, any longer, have the qualities a woman should. Whereas the beauty contests are a platform for the women to come out in front of the world and exhibit herself as the epitome of love, beauty, wit, empathy and patience. Which in fact is giving them chance to prove their womanhood in front of the world in a very respectable way.

The 'question' whereas, as I understand, focuses on revelation of skin which can not be the only factor which can decide womanhood.

I agree that revealing skin and figure does not really show your beauty hence I think it should not be such an important part of such pageants.