影片對白 A real
loser is somebody that's so afraid of not winning, they don't even
try.
思想火花
《陽光小美女》不是一部普通的志勵片，它沒有把堅信追尋的過程賦予最后完美的大團圓。奧利弗幸運的是，她有一群真正愛她的家人，他們并沒有因為得不到第一而放棄幫助奧利弗千里迢迢參加選秀大賽，一家人也在這場不尋常的旅途中重新認識自己，把缺失變成另一種人生態度。
考考你
乘熱打鐵
文化面面觀
Beauty contest: an
introduction 選美大賽的歷史
A beauty contest, or beauty pageant, is a competition based mainly, though
not always entirely, on the physical beauty of its contestants. Almost
invariably, competitions for men and women are separate events, and those for
men are not referred to as beauty contests. Beauty contests for women are more
common, and winners are called beauty queens. Beauty contests for men, like Mr.
Universe, are more likely to be "body building" contests-quite unlike the
traditional "beauty contest" in which women are judged upon many attributes both
physical and otherwise. However, in the 1990s, male "beauty contests" began to
shift focus. Instead of only considering muscle mass, the competitions began to
judge the natural physical attributes of the contestants as well as their
physiques. These include Mr. World and Manhunt International.
 |
| Miss Japan Riyo
Mori adjusts her crown after being crowned Miss Universe 2007 at the
National Auditorium in Mexico City May 28, 2007.
[Reuters] |
There are also beauty contests for
children. These events are often controversial, particularly when children are
dressed provocatively and described in adult terms.
History of beauty contests
Choosing symbolic kings and queens for May Day and other festivities is an
ancient custom in Europe in which beautiful young women symbolize their nation's
virtues and other abstract ideas. The first modern American pageant was staged
by P. T. Barnum in 1854, but his beauty contest was closed down by public
protest-he previously held dog, baby, and bird beauty contests. He substituted
daguerreotypes for judging, a practice quickly adopted by newspapers. Newspapers
held photo beauty contests for many decades: In 1880, the first "Bathing Beauty
Pageant" took place as part of a summer festival to promote business in Rehoboth
Beach, Delaware. Contests became a regular part of summer beach life, with the
most elaborate contest taking place in Atlantic City, New Jersey, where the
"Fall Frolic" attracted women from many cities and towns.
The modern beauty pageant's origin is traceable to the Miss America Pageant,
which was first held in Atlantic City in 1921, under the title "Inter-City
Beauty Contest." The Miss America Pageant eventually included preliminary
eliminations, an evening gown competition, musical variety shows, and judging by
panel. Still, the contest was at first shunned by middle-class society. Pageants
did not become respectable until World War II, when "beauty queens" were
recruited to sell bonds and to entertain troops. Scholarships and talent
competitions evoked even closer scrutiny of contestants' morals and backgrounds.
Other major contests include the yearly Miss World competition (founded by
Eric Morley in 1951), Miss Universe (founded in 1952), Miss International and
Miss Earth (founded in 2001 with environmental awareness as its concern). These
are considered the Big Four pageants, the four largest and most famous
international beauty contests. Minor contests, such as the Miss Bondi contest in
Australia, are common throughout the world in the summer months. During the
1950s, pageants thrived to promote county fairs and local products. For example,
some of Raquel Welch's titles included "Miss Photogenic" and "Miss Contour."
Across the world, women from around the world participate each year in local
competitions for the chance to represent their country's international title.
 |
| Mrs. Texas crowned
in beauty
contest |
其實，選美活動從未脫離一個游戲規則，那就是選出男性心目中最有魅力的女人。就目的而言，西方選美與過去東方君主選美的不同之處，在于一種是為一個男人，一種是為了一群男人。社會學家們則將二者區分為，一個是父權專制文化的產物，一個是父權民主文化的產物。
選美大賽說到底，是利用美女來吸引眼球，是一種真正意義上的"注意力經濟"，觀眾的注意力給賽事的參與者帶來了巨大的財富。世界級選美賽事由于運作成熟，都有固定的贊助商，因此往往給賽事帶來上億美元的收益。
選美之所以有生命力，得益于其經濟聯姻所創造的神話。并在世界各地不斷地得到驗證。1952年，世界經濟大蕭條的時候，美國首次舉辦"環球小姐"選美大賽。隨之而來的是美國經濟的大復蘇。于是這次比賽也就成為美國經濟史上的一個神話，人們也首次嘗到了選美帶動經濟的甜頭。
而自從1996年，印度小姐首次在"世界小姐"選美比賽中獲勝后，世界選美比賽的后冠頻頻落在印度頭上，印度成了世界著名的美女盛產國，旅游業等產業迅速攀升，于是印度人提出了"美女救國"的口號。
在南美小國委內瑞拉的"美女經濟"眾所周知，選美是委內瑞拉頭號"工業"，該國美女在國際三大選美競賽中已獲得12次頭銜，被譽為"美人工廠"。該國多數人認為：這是一個對外表特別關注的社會。即使48小時發生兩次政變，即使是坦克橫行，電視臺仍在播出選美比賽，美女制造業也從沒有癱瘓。
