Multimodality Discourses Of The Miss Universe Beauty Pageant As An Arena Of Cultural Production

Abstract

The Miss Universe beauty pageant is a cultural production arena where the construction of female beauty is formed through an ideal image that is slowly socialized by the media, becoming a standard in society. This research aims to find out and describe the construction of the meaning of beauty built through the Miss Universe beauty contest through the perspective of Discourse Analysis Multimodality, reveal the implied meaning of gestures, and understand the self-identity of the Miss Universe contestants. This qualitative research uses a critical paradigm using document studies, interviews, and literature. Data analysis used multimodality discourse analysis through data reduction, presentation, and conclusion. The results of this study indicate that: 1) The meaning of beauty at the Miss Universe 2021 pageant is constructed through the depiction of the contestants' perfection, which consists of their physique, attitude, and insight. The contestants' appearances have created beauty criteria that shape the idealization of the female figure and influence the audience's perspective on self-appreciation; 2) Overall, the most frequently shown contestant gestures give confidence and grace according to the message in the Miss Universe slogan, namely confidently beautiful; 3) The identity of the Miss Universe contestants reveals who, personality, where, and what culture is being performed with various styles and uniqueness. This uniqueness can be in the form of personality, interests, favorite food, way of talking, way of walking, and even how the contestants behave when responding to things and questions.

Schematic Structure and Metadiscourse Analysis of Beauty Pageant-Winning Answers

“…This trend aligns with the stereotypical beauty standards often associated with beauty pageants. This finding is consistent with Hermawan et al (2023) discovery that beauty queens' digital platforms frequently emphasize the empowerment of inner beauty. This stands in contrast to Sari (2014) findings in Michelle Obama's speech, which highlighted the prevalence of topicalisers, and Azijah & Gulö (2020) analysis of Jacinda Ardern's Christchurch memorial speech, where commentaries dominated.…”

“…The Second study, discussing the world of beauty pageants, concluded that the women selected as the world's most beautiful individuals represent characteristics aligned with 'stereotypical Western feminine beauty standards, projecting economic and political sway on the global stage (Kumara & Jayawardhana, 2018). The following research was done by Hermawan et al (2023) discovering that most messages that are delivered through the digital platforms of the beauty queens are empowerment of inner beauty. Following in linguistic perspective, in the study on speech functions and mood system realization in the finalists' speeches at Miss Grand International 2020, Widiyanto et al (2022) concluded that the variety of mood systems is different among each contestant, due to language and culture differentiations.…”