So I've heard Ne-Yo's new song "Miss Independent" a few times now and I thought it was kind of catchy. It's message definitely seems to be different from a handful of other rap/r&b songs which seem to sing about women being objects for men's visual and literal pleasure excluding any thought of those women having minds of their own. "Miss Independent" gives off the vibe that Ne-Yo is interested in this "independent woman" strictly based on her mind, intellegence, authority and of course, independence. "There's something about kinda woman that want you but don't need you" translates into "It's nice to find a woman who can stand on her own two feet and you know the reason she is with you is based on feelings rather than for money or material things". "She's got me thinking about getting involved, thats the kinda girl I need" states in other words that she gives off the impression that she will be a good relationship girl as opposed to a fling or one night stand and Ne-Yo seems to like that. Alot of rap songs don't talk about relationships, they just reference "hooking up" because they find the woman they see attractive. "Miss independent ooh the way you shine miss independent" brings the song to an end. Someone telling me that they can tell I'm independent is a great compliment, as well as telling me I shine which is why when I saw the end of this music video for the first time today, as well as the rest of the video I got slightly angry.
The imagery in the video doesn't exactly go hand in hand with the lyrics. The setting is a business office full of woman saying "Good Morning, Ne-yo" with slightly suggestive or seductive smiles and looks. One camara shot shows only a womens legs but you hear her voice saying good morning and Ne-yo stops walking briefly and it looks like he is attempting to look up the woman's skirt and he contines walking to his office past many other woman. He returns the certain looks he gets to many of the woman in the office as he walks by them, usually checking them out as well as he passes by. Now, if he was so interested in this "idependent woman" and thought he wanted to start a relationship with her, why would he look at the other woman the way he did...? Throughout the whole video there are shots of differant woman giving Ne-yo "the look". Camera angles include shots from above which focus on clevage, a shot of just legs and a shot of just a womans back which shows an opening in her shirt with no bra strap to be seen.
What I thought was a step in a positve direction with this song was just shot down by the director and creator of this video, along with the agreement by Ne-yo to do it.
At the end of the video, the "independent woman" who was seen for her mind and authority basically looses all power she had. She sees Ne-yo as they are both leaving work and she apoligizes for "cutting Ne-yo off" in the meeting and he says it's ok because she is "the boss". She askes if there is anything she can do to make it up to him (like it was THAT big of a deal, right...?), Ne-yo asks what once again, "the boss" had in mind as he moves his glance up and down her body and she smiles at him suggestively and walks away and looks back at him. He starts to watch her walk away, looks at the camera and bites his lip like he knows what he's about to get.
So much for being into her for her MIND and independence...!
Check it out for yourself and let me know what you think of "Miss Independent".
*Mol
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Aww, a pretty bride...
To keep the theme running from today's class I searched commercials and how they portrayed gender. The commercial I came across didn't show any hint of what it was advertising but I decided to watch it anyway because of its title...
As it started I thought, 'aww, this is nice, a mother helping her daughter get ready for her wedding...I wonder what the commercial is for..." but as it went on I thought "please let this be a joke...", the advice the mother was giving her daughter on how to make the marriage work was kind of ridiculous. I still wasn't sure what the commercial was supposed to be for and then the mother handed her daughter a card and I thought, "this is a Hallmark commercial..?!" but...the daughter opens the card to reveal the Bud Light gift certificate.
I don't really know how to take this commercial. It kind of made me chuckle to be honest once I saw the whole thing. Notice at the end where the two men hold hands on the table while one of them starts to cry and the woman at the table shakes her head while putting her hand over her face. It's kind of saying men are that simple to the point that they will be happy and feel loved if you get them a case of beer. They could care less about communication and support and spending time with you, but as long as they have that beer they will be fine.
Now this commercial is a little different than your typical beer commercial. Usually there will be a half naked girl in there somewhere to try to get men's attention, so the fact that it was a bride instead was a change. This change could be there for different reasons. Maybe it is supposed to get the attention of women viewers (which is just what happend with me like I previously said) because a lot of woman like weddings and once they see the bride instead of the half naked woman they will actually pay attention to the commercial and see what is being advertised rather than changing her focus when she sees the "perfect", sexy woman on the t.v. screen.
Over all I think this commercial is not really degrading to women compared to the others I've seen. I think it actually makes fun of men a little more and the whole relationship between men and women and how it always seems to be the women who makes sacrifices to keep the relationship together even though all the guy wants to do is hang out with his friends and drink beer.
Anyone have a different interpretation...?
*Mol
As it started I thought, 'aww, this is nice, a mother helping her daughter get ready for her wedding...I wonder what the commercial is for..." but as it went on I thought "please let this be a joke...", the advice the mother was giving her daughter on how to make the marriage work was kind of ridiculous. I still wasn't sure what the commercial was supposed to be for and then the mother handed her daughter a card and I thought, "this is a Hallmark commercial..?!" but...the daughter opens the card to reveal the Bud Light gift certificate.
I don't really know how to take this commercial. It kind of made me chuckle to be honest once I saw the whole thing. Notice at the end where the two men hold hands on the table while one of them starts to cry and the woman at the table shakes her head while putting her hand over her face. It's kind of saying men are that simple to the point that they will be happy and feel loved if you get them a case of beer. They could care less about communication and support and spending time with you, but as long as they have that beer they will be fine.
Now this commercial is a little different than your typical beer commercial. Usually there will be a half naked girl in there somewhere to try to get men's attention, so the fact that it was a bride instead was a change. This change could be there for different reasons. Maybe it is supposed to get the attention of women viewers (which is just what happend with me like I previously said) because a lot of woman like weddings and once they see the bride instead of the half naked woman they will actually pay attention to the commercial and see what is being advertised rather than changing her focus when she sees the "perfect", sexy woman on the t.v. screen.
Over all I think this commercial is not really degrading to women compared to the others I've seen. I think it actually makes fun of men a little more and the whole relationship between men and women and how it always seems to be the women who makes sacrifices to keep the relationship together even though all the guy wants to do is hang out with his friends and drink beer.
Anyone have a different interpretation...?
*Mol
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Stick with what you're good at, Disney...!
Hi Everyone...
Sorry it has taken me so long to get this up and running. I'm not exactly used to this blogging thing yet but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it.
So, I was looking at feministing.com trying to find something interesting and a little unexpected and...I found it...! Everyone's familiar with Disney, right...? Of course...! Who doesn't have a favorite Disney movie...? Personally, mine is Cinderella with her helpful and funny little mice and birds. Their songs are so catchy..! But anyway, that's besides the point. Disney is known for their cartoons that are usually very upbeat and seem to picture life as if not perfect, close to it. Right...? Well, there was a short film made and co-produced with kotex in 1946 targeting pre-teen girls. It was all about the "Story of Menstration". My first reaction was "whaaat...?!" I personally would never think to mix the two (Disney and menstration), it just seems weird. So, I watched this film, which is about 10 minutes long.
At first I thought, "Well, this is still kind of weird hearing about the fallopian tubes and ovaries from a very distinct and recognizable Disney type voice when usually you hear that voice talking about princesses and castles, but it does seem informative and may be ok for a pre-teen...". As I continued to watch it, it became slightly more of a joke to me. They made it sound like once a girl gets her period she is diseased and she needs to take every precautionary step to keep from spreding it to her neighbor...! Not only that, it makes girls sound like total idiots. "Oh be sure not to take showers that are scalding hot or freezing cold...!", who does that on a normal day anyway...? The film mentions using "common sence" a hand full of times, including the part where it talks about exercise during menstration. As the acceptable exercise it shows a girl, on a bike, wearing a skirt, speeding down a hill while not holding onto the handle bars...hmm...THAT screams common sence...! More advice given is to "stand up straight", umm, sorry but if I'm dying with cramps the last thing on my mind is keeping good posture, but maybe that's just me. And be sure to remember, to keep your nose powdered because some how that makes you look smart...? and leads to a easier period...? Getting plenty of sunshine and rest are the last two bits of advice given, which yes, both are very important, but they aren't exactly as easy to get plenty of, like the film makes it look, while leading a busy life like most girls and women do
The film is informative at parts, slighty offensive at others and it definatley leaves some important things out which will leave a pre-teen pretty confused.
It will be interesting to hear what you guys think about this and whether you agree with me or think I was way to harsh on the film.
*Mol
Sorry it has taken me so long to get this up and running. I'm not exactly used to this blogging thing yet but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it.
So, I was looking at feministing.com trying to find something interesting and a little unexpected and...I found it...! Everyone's familiar with Disney, right...? Of course...! Who doesn't have a favorite Disney movie...? Personally, mine is Cinderella with her helpful and funny little mice and birds. Their songs are so catchy..! But anyway, that's besides the point. Disney is known for their cartoons that are usually very upbeat and seem to picture life as if not perfect, close to it. Right...? Well, there was a short film made and co-produced with kotex in 1946 targeting pre-teen girls. It was all about the "Story of Menstration". My first reaction was "whaaat...?!" I personally would never think to mix the two (Disney and menstration), it just seems weird. So, I watched this film, which is about 10 minutes long.
At first I thought, "Well, this is still kind of weird hearing about the fallopian tubes and ovaries from a very distinct and recognizable Disney type voice when usually you hear that voice talking about princesses and castles, but it does seem informative and may be ok for a pre-teen...". As I continued to watch it, it became slightly more of a joke to me. They made it sound like once a girl gets her period she is diseased and she needs to take every precautionary step to keep from spreding it to her neighbor...! Not only that, it makes girls sound like total idiots. "Oh be sure not to take showers that are scalding hot or freezing cold...!", who does that on a normal day anyway...? The film mentions using "common sence" a hand full of times, including the part where it talks about exercise during menstration. As the acceptable exercise it shows a girl, on a bike, wearing a skirt, speeding down a hill while not holding onto the handle bars...hmm...THAT screams common sence...! More advice given is to "stand up straight", umm, sorry but if I'm dying with cramps the last thing on my mind is keeping good posture, but maybe that's just me. And be sure to remember, to keep your nose powdered because some how that makes you look smart...? and leads to a easier period...? Getting plenty of sunshine and rest are the last two bits of advice given, which yes, both are very important, but they aren't exactly as easy to get plenty of, like the film makes it look, while leading a busy life like most girls and women do
The film is informative at parts, slighty offensive at others and it definatley leaves some important things out which will leave a pre-teen pretty confused.
It will be interesting to hear what you guys think about this and whether you agree with me or think I was way to harsh on the film.
*Mol
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