The history of beauty pageantssince ancient times it has been based on the physical beauty of women, and the different civilizations and social strata at different times in history have followed a series of patterns that have been globalized around the world, however, there are exceptions very particular that have brought with them the controversy on this subject.
In this sense, we could say that the concept of beauty can vary according to culture; for example, in the ancient Pythagorean school the connection between mathematics and beauty was considered important; From there, these parameters began to be taken into account, to seek symmetry in objects, even in people, to establish a harmonious concept of beauty.
But, Plato raised the concept of beauty from a more human and spiritual perspective, stating that beauty in the world is visible to everyone; however, this is only a manifestation of the true beauty that resides in the soul, to which we can all access, if we manage to internalize and understand what the true knowledge of beauty implies.
Starting from this premise, it is interesting to mention examples in which beauty has a sense contrary to that conceived from the Western perspective, for example, in the Mayan culture it was considered that a person with strabismus was beautiful, and for this reason the indigenous mothers hung some little balls of resin from their children’s hair, so that they fell on their eyes, which made them twist, causing a deviation, which, as was said before, was considered a symbol of beauty.
As you can see, the concepts can vary drastically, depending on the culture and the country, however, in this article we are going to delve into the conceptualization of beauty that is mostly accepted in the modern world; but that lays its foundations in antiquity. In this context, it is believed that history of beauty pageants, begins with the stories that are made in the Bible, specifically in the book of Esther (2:2:4); when it is explained that King Ausero was challenged by Queen Vashti, and in response to this challenge, he decided to call for a «contest» to choose his new consort.
This is how, an orphan named Esther, appeared before the King, who, amazed by her beauty, selected her from a group of young people, and placed the crown on her, thus naming her his «Queen», and celebrating with a huge banquet. in his honor; so it is also said that the crowns with precious stones used to crown the Misses today, have their origin in this act of coronation mentioned in the Bible.
Despite this story, which could be taken as the first antecedent of the history of beauty pageants, it is convenient to cite a second antecedent which is related to the Greek goddess of discord, called Eris. It is said that this deity was very conflictive and self-centered, and not being invited to the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, who were the parents of the famous hero «Achilles», she felt offended and in revenge sent a golden apple to the celebration. inscribed with the word «kallisti», which means «for the most beautiful».
It begins like this, a story taken from mythology, quite interesting, that many do not consider as a true antecedent, but that is worth mentioning, because it takes us back to enigmatic times full of culture and mysticism.
Continuing with the narration, Eris, Goddess of Discord, fulfilled her mission, by sowing discord in the celebration, since the goddesses Hera, Aphrodite and Athena wanted to keep the apple, because each one was considered the most beautiful among the beautiful ones, requesting the God Zeus to make the choice between her, a mission that in turn entrusted to the Trojan prince Paris; who was besieged by the offers of these three beauties. Hera promised him to be sovereign of the world, Athena to be invincible in war and Aphrodite promised to give him Helena, wife of King Menelaus, the most beautiful woman in the world.
Finally, Paris chose Aphrodite, who became her protector, for which Hera and Athena swore revenge, however, Paris did not pay attention to them, and later kidnapped Helen, a fact that led to the Trojan War.
But, we are going to move back in time and space, to the United States and the middle of the 19th century, when a businessman named Phineas Taylor Barnum; who had experience in holding contests of horses, birds, dogs, cows and even babies, and had the fabulous idea of organizing one for women, however, it failed completely, because most of the participants had a bad reputation, and the people began to protest.
But despite this setback, Phineas Taylor Barnum was not discouraged and returned to his idea years later, changing the method of choosing the winner. This is how the publication of photos of each of the candidates, exhibited in their museum of «phenomena», became the way to choose the most beautiful girl, becoming one of the first antecedents of beauty contests, where simply taking into account physical beauty, their faces and bodies, and what they could convey through their photographic poses.
But, if we talk about the first official beauty contest, we must clarify that the first one that was held was Miss America, held in 1921 in the city of «Atlantic City», New Jersey, United States; Miss Margaret Gorman being the winner.
At the beginning of this contest, the competition between the young women was based solely on physical beauty, where the face, hair, bearing, elegance, and above all the body were valued, for which a parade was held in swimsuits, however, later this event evolved and the item «talent» was included among the aspects that were taken into account in the evaluation of the qualifying jury.
In the process of history of beauty pageants, the Miss United States and the Miss Universe arise, because in 1951, Yolande Betbeze, the winner of the previous contest, refused to wear the swimsuit that the bikini brand «Catalina», as sponsor of the contest, had assigned him; fact that made the brand withdraw its sponsorship of the contest and on its own create the Miss United States and Miss Universe pageants.
It should be noted that the first edition of Miss Universe was held in 1952, in Long Beach, California, and the winner was the representative of Finland, Armi Kuusela.
The contest began to be televised in 1955 by the CBS network, causing the contests to become popular throughout the world, and year after year more and more national competitions were added with the intention of sending a beautiful emissary to the highest beauty pageant in the world.
An interesting fact happened in 1993, when the Bosnian War was taking place in Sarajevo, a conflict that brought many deaths and suffering to its people, which is why a beauty contest was organized as a means of protest against the attacks on the civilian population by Serb snipers.
This Miss Sarajevo contest, which was won by the candidate Inela Nogic, was held in a basement in the city, where the candidates paraded with a banner with the legend: «Don’t let them kill us», managing to participate in the Miss Universe, with which achieved worldwide fame for its beauty and courage, becoming a symbol of resistance.
Currently, there are more than 80 countries that compete year after year for the Miss Universe crown, which send their candidates after having won their national contests, and preparing them from the physical, emotional, communicational and intellectual point of view. Each time the demands regarding preparation are greater, and countries resort to endless strategies to position their candidates as members of the semi-finalists and finalists.
The countries whose candidates have won the most crowns are: the United States with 8, Venezuela with 7 and Puerto Rico with 5. It should be noted that the candidates from Venezuela and the United States each year manage to capture the attention of the press in the different places of the world where this contest is held; their names being generally mentioned among the favourites. In the case of Miss Venezuela, its candidates are selected after strict preparation and usually go to this competition very well prepared, placing most of the time among the finalists.
In recent years, Miss Universe has undergone a series of changes since the current President of the United States, Donald Trump, sold the franchise; making sure that beauty standards have already changed, to the point that they have classified candidates whose bodies are not fully fit, that is, who have been overweight.
Also, making history, in 2018 Miss Universe accepted the first transgender Miss, as part of a new inclusion policy. This candidate was Angela Ponce, Miss Spain, who despite not having qualified among the 20 semifinalists, she received special treatment, being called to the stage and parading alone down the catwalk, as a symbol of non-discrimination; fact that has been the subject of controversy, since there are many defenders of this decision, as well as many detractors, who do not consider that she should have been among the candidates, not having been born as a woman.
This is how the path and evolution of beauty pageants, which goes from the stories of the book of Esther in the Bible, to going through a beauty pageant through photographs, and then giving rise to the emergence of the first pageant official in history, as Miss America was in 1921, it has taken us to Miss Universe, Miss World, Miss International, among hundreds of other contests that take place around the world; It gives us faith in the competitive spirit of the human being, who looks for elements in appearance and intelligence to highlight a new concept of beauty.