Miley Miley Miley

So, as all of you know, Miley Cyrus has gotten a lot of criticism for her VMAs performance. Most women, and even men, have been quite open on their opinions of Miley's performance. There has been a census among people, it seems, that Miley's performance was over-the-top and, quite frankly, disgusting.

Personally, I have very mixed feelings on this topic, and am curious to see how you all feel about it.

On one hand, I can see what all the fuss is about. Miley was being pretty vulgar, but then again isn't that what her genre of music is all about? I've seen a million women in rap videos shaking it (or twerking) more explicitly than Miley, but there has never been an outrage like this.

I have a theory.

I think that people are so upset with Miley's performance, because for the first time, it's a woman who is choosing to be vulgar instead of a man. Miley is taking the dominant sexual role instead of being sexualized by a man. She is the one smacking girls on the ass. She was the one who initiated the provocative touching between her and Robin Thicke. I don't think society is quite ready for a woman who is this open with her sexuality.

Another thing that bothered me with this Miley controversy, was the fact that people keep referring to her as a "girl." Miley Cyrus is 20 years old. Okay, that isn't the most mature age, but she is still an adult. All of the articles I have been reading about celebrity reactions to Miley, have been referring to her as a "troubled girl," or saying "why would she do this, her parents are watching this!" Who cares? She is an adult artist who is expressing herself. I'm also uncomfortable with the things people have been saying about her. In the tabloids, she is a slut, or even worse, mentally ill. There has also been tons of comments, like "she shouldn't even be up there doing that. She has no ass!" or "she used to be so pretty and now look at her." Just because she cut off her hair and has more of an untraditional, unfeminine look society deems her as ugly.

So, in conclusion, this dissing Miley thing isn't sitting well with me, and I'm curious to hear how more feminists feel about the issue.

"Women Should Pay More For Health Insurance Because They Have Breasts and Ovaries."

Go Topless Day was August 26th but it seems like women might require even more activism stemming from another challenge that comes from the differences in the way male and female bodies are viewed.

 In an argument for why women should pay more for health insurance than men, Dr.David Samadi said, "We only have the prostate. Women have the breasts, the ovaries, the uterus, they get checked in every part."

This man is proposing that women, who are already paid less and have less job opportunities than men, spend even more of the money that they do make on insurance simply because they have different body parts than men do. This is a good example of how oppression involves othering, discrimination and is systematic. This also supports why Go Topless Day is important activism.

Women Should Pay More For Health Insurance Because They Have Breasts And Ovaries, Says Fox Expert

How bodies are used.

http://www.digtriad.com/news/watercooler/article/293994/176/Expert-Thigh-Gap-Becoming-Teen-Obsession

In class we talked about how there is a constant 'head-butting' between ideas of the sexualized woman and the homemaker. We mostly focused on a woman's breasts, but what about other body parts? The article I want to bring to the classes attention is one on the thigh gap fad. Western society seems to keep creating new ways for women to alter themselves to gain attention. This attention does not have to be sexual in nature. Instead, many women may adhere to these fads so that they seem 'current.' They are women who are hard working, AND still follow to what is patriarchally wanted. Sadly, these fads help in the ever increasing problem of eating disorders. I am a feminist that views eating disorders as a large indicator in the growth of insidious ideas that kill. By not looking at the root social cause of eating disorders (in my opinion patriarchal systems) these disorders will keep multiplying. 

Does anyone else feel that diet fads, or specific clothing fads wear on feminist movements? Am I just scapegoating a larger problem with mental health systems onto patriarchal ideals? 

Blurred Lines and the Effects on the Feminist Movement

Before continuing this blog post, I would like to warn you that the video I have attached the link to is explicit, as well as a nominee for multiple VMAs, including music video of the year.

I am sure that all of you have heard the extremely overplayed song “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke. Admittedly, this song has a catchy beat, which is unfortunately accompanied by some inappropriate lyrics. It is not until I truly listened to the lyrics and the meaning behind this song that I became deeply disturbed by what I interpret to be the meaning of the song. As the title “Blurred Lines” suggests, Thicke sings about the fine line between consensual sex and rape, practically saying that the line is, in a sense, subjective to the individuals involved in the act aka the “blurred lines”. This deeply troubled me because it takes such a serious case such as rape and encourages a scapegoat by giving an excuse of “blurred lines.” As the lyrics explain, if the girl is attracted to the guy and intrigues him in a sexual manner then that must mean that the girl wants to engage in sexual acts with him. This video features three men, Thicke, Pharrell, and T.I., following around scantily clad women, depicting the man in such an empowering role over the female, showing the females in a purely sexual manner as the men encourage them to have sex with them, which can be seen in the lyrics of the song, specifically in the chorus of the song. As a side note, in an interview by GQ, Thicke has made jokes about degrading women, saying he has never done it before so it is fun to do in this particular song. He has also countered that statement saying this song helps to redefine the feminist movement.

Chorus:

I always wanted a good girl
I know you want it
I know you want it
I know you want it
You're a good girl
Can't let it get past me
You're far from plastic
Talk about getting blasted
I hate these blurred lines
I know you want it
I know you want it
I know you want it
But you're a good girl
The way you grab me
Must wanna get nasty
Go ahead, get at me

I also thought the explicit version of this video was important to look at due to the fact that these women are topless and wearing nude colored underwear, making them appear fully naked to the audience. I thought this was intriguing considering the discussion we had on Tuesday about women around the world showing their empowerment by openly breastfeeding their children and taking their clothes off in order to protest acts performed by the government, as well as demonstrations that degrade women. So where does this video come in? How does this video effect the movement when so many females try to gain empowerment by showing their bodies and the power that their bodies hold? This video seems to take power away from the females, giving the power to the fully clothed males in the music video. Since this video was nominated for three VMAs, how will it affect the outlook people hold on these feminist movements such as Femen?

Link for the song lyrics: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/robinthicke/blurredlines.html

Link for the Vevo video: http://www.vevo.com/watch/robin-thicke/blurred-lines-unrated-version/USUV71300526?syndicationid=bb8a16ab-1279-4f17-969b-1dba5eb60eda&shortlink=W0OCcA&country=US&referralurl=http%3a%2f%2fwww.youtube.com%2fwatch%3fv%3dyyDUC1LUXSU