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Beautiful ideals by Gary Boyle Photo courtesy of Bangkok Post

Read the following story by Melanin Mahavongtrakul from the Bangkok Post. Then, answer the questions that follow.

Despite criticism, beauty contests like have much to offer.

LOOK FOR LOOKS Bringing a close to this year's season, from the was recently crowned the 67th winner of Miss Universe, one of the biggest international pageants. The event was broadcast to millions worldwide who tuned in to cheer for their country's representatives and their favourite beauty queens.

As a form of entertainment, beauty pageants have endured for decades. As their name suggests, they value one thing above all: beauty. At least, that was what they originally set out to do: look for the girl on stage with the best face, body, posture and manner, judged as they parade around in tiny swimsuits and gorgeous gowns. But is that still all there is to beauty pageants and their queens? In this fast-changing world, are beauty pageants still relevant or appropriate? Can they serve as a form of empowerment to women?

ENTERTAINMENT OUTLET "It's entertainment, first of all. The world can be a stressful place and beauty pageants are one outlet that people can enjoy," said Chananporn Rosjan, a former beauty queen who represented at . "At the same time, it's a platform for women to do something with their lives. For a woman to make a difference or speak out in this male-dominated society, sometimes that's not something they can just do outright. Beauty pageants are places where they can do that.”

Chananporn's life and career came full circle this month when, as a pilot at AirAsia, she flew this year's Miss Universe contestants and 2017 winner Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters to Krabi. Chananporn recalled that her time in the pageant felt like a summer camp that passed by in a blur. Afterwards, she returned to her normal life and job, but newly equipped with the skills and experiences she acquired as a beauty queen.

"One of the reasons why I entered the pageant was because I was quiet. I had no social skills. In a way, it was like I was forcing myself to speak more and interact with people better, to develop skills I was lacking. I still use what I've learned from the pageant. Being a pilot involves teamwork. Every day, the crew changes and I have to develop new relationships. I'm a captain, so I have a huge responsibility."

Over the years, beauty pageants have been criticised for prizing women's looks while disregarding their other attributes. Chananporn shrugged off this idea. "Honestly, doesn't everyone in the world judge others based on appearances and first impressions?" she said. She believes that beauty pageants can indeed be empowering to women. This is certainly the direction some beauty pageants have been shifting towards in recent years.

SUPER FAN Observing these changes for the last three decades or so has been Aishwarda Sirilaksana, a Miss Universe "super fan", who was a winning contestant on the Fan Pan Tae game show for her extensive knowledge of the pageant. She echoed Chananporn's opinion, saying that Miss Universe back in the 1960s and 1970s used to be someone who was exceptionally pretty but spoke little. But nowadays, contestants face interviews and tough questions on topics ranging from politics to social movements -- questions that could have been designed for politicians, she said.

Women from all kinds of backgrounds have been among the contestants at the pageant. It reflects the diversity of women and serves as a reflection of society's changing mindset and growing equality. And this year marked quite a milestone for Miss Universe, as it welcomed the first transgender representative at the competition. "Women all possess beauty within them. If they have what it takes, anyone can be Miss Universe regardless of country, race or anything,” said Aishwarda.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. So are the benefits of beauty pageants. As someone who started watching Miss Universe when she was young, Aishwarda said she learned a lot of things, such as language, culture and even how a woman should carry herself. Such is the potential role and relevance of beauty pageants in today's society, she said, for both women and general audiences. Vocabulary empowerment (n): authority or power given to somebody to do something platform (n): an opportunity to make your ideas or beliefs known publicly

// Test Yourself is taking a break for Christmas and New Year. Enjoy the holidays and see you for the next Test Yourself on January 12, 2019 //

Section 1 Read through the story and answer the following questions. 1. For how many years has Miss Universe been taking place? ……………. 2. When did Chanaporn enter Miss Universe? ……………. 3. What is Chanaporn’s current job? ……………. 4. Chanaporn learned new skills at Miss Universe. True or false? ……………. 5. Aishwarda won a game show contest for her beauty. True or false? …………..... 6. Where is Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters from? a. The Philippines. b. Krabi. c. The story doesn’t say. 7. When were the Miss Universe questions difficult? a. In the 1960’s. b. In the 1970’s. c. In recent years. 8. What was different about this year’s pageant? a. Thailand won. b. A transgender contestant entered. c. It empowered women.

Section 2 Underline one grammatically incorrect word in each of the following sentences. Then, write down the grammatically correct word in the space given. 9. Beauty pageants can help international relationship. …………… 10. Some people are afraid of to many transgender contestants. …………… 11. We’d hear people said that beauty queens have no brains. …………… 12. Beauty contests reflects the diversity of women. …………… 13. They show that be pretty is not everything. ……………

Section 3 Read the following passage. Then, fill in the blanks with the correct words from the choices given. "Empowerment ….14…. beyond just the outer shell. It looks ….15…., into how a woman can be ….16…. to society and the world. This is why the context of beauty pageants ….17…. slowly changed. Miss Universe, for example, has changed from someone with a flawless face and body to someone ….18…. life experiences they can share, someone who initiates and continues social work. A ….19…. model." 14. a. goes b. went c. go 15. a. far b. farthest c. further 16. a. benefit b. beneficial c. more benefit 17. a. can b. are c. have 18. a. with b. of c. who 19. a. roll b. role c. rule

Section 4 Find a word used in the story that matches the following definitions. 20. Very attractive. 21. Something that cannot be seen clearly. 22. The position in which someone holds their body. 23. The state of having to deal with something or have control over it. 24. To repeat an original sound.

For the answers, find the story online at www.bangkokpost.com/learning If you have any questions or feedback, please contact the Editor at [email protected]