Alexandria
Scudder
6 February 2015
Entry 2
Throwing Out Our Bras
In Throwing Out Our Bras feminism
is talked about as a political movement, discussing the actions taken by women
in the late 60’s. This particular action
took place in Atlantic City at the Miss America pageant. Women wanted everyone to know that the
pageant was a disgrace and that women would not be judged like animals.
The views on pageants today are
skewed depending on whom you talk to.
Many feminist women do not believe in pageants because they feel women
are projecting themselves to others as sexual beings. By projecting women as sexual beings all the
time it makes us look like all we are is looks and that is why men judge women
the way that they do. If less women
looked to men for assurance and acceptance than women could end up being more
powerful than we already are in today’s society. Men all seem to enjoy the pageant scene
because it is one place you are able to judge women and not be looked at as
cruel. By judging women it is allowing
us to take a step back to man and that is what most feminists find wrong with
pageants.
To show how the feminists felt in
the 60’s they decided to take a stand and peacefully protest. As Throwing Out Our Bras says “They
swung brassieres in the air like lassos.
They crowned a live sheep “Miss America” to dramatize that the contests,
and all women, are “oppressed and judged like animals at a county fair.”” As we have progressed as a society and women
have more power than they did in the 60’s men have slowly been put in the same
position. Now of days men are competing
in muscle building competitions and are judged by men and women. If men do not decide to bulk up now of days
they are viewed as a “geek” or “weak”.
Although I believe that women are judged more harshly than men are based
off of our wide variety of body types, men are also being judged. I have met many women that say, “he has a
great personality but it’s a good thing he’s attractive” because in our human
make up looks do mean something even it may sound superficial.
In our current society pageants have
become less looked down upon because men and women are doing them not just
women. Most people’s biggest problem is
with parents putting their young children in pageants before they can make up
their minds for themselves. As many
people have seen the show “Toddlers in Tiaras” which portrays young girls
forced into pageant life by their parents at a young age. Over the four years it aired until it was
taken off air in October of 2013 many people were disgusted with the idea of
the thoughts that were being put into those toddler’s heads. By making young girls aspire to be a “pageant
queen” it is automatically setting them up to be held at a lower standard than
men. If women in today’s society want to
strive to be equals they must stop teaching their children to be less superior
to men.
I agree with what you're saying about women sexuality and why men like the pageants. It makes since that women would like the pageants because of the reaction that they get from the men.
ReplyDeleteI like how you say women need to stop looking up to men for assurance because thats part of the reason we are looked at as less powerful. I also like how you mention that men also are judged in a similar way as women are, although women are judged more harsh because sometimes feminists don't realize that men have similar issues that we often face.
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