Blog #1
Blog #1
Prompt 1: I chose the song, “If I were a Boy” by Beyonce(2008), for my cultural artifact because there was a portrayal of labeling genders, what it means to be a girl versus what it means to be a boy. The artists’ lyrics convey what her life would be like if she were a man and what her life is like, now, as a woman, generalizing both males and females and their roles in the life of one another.
Prompt 2: My chosen cultural artifact labels both men and women. Women, in this song, are portrayed as always pure and true, never being the one in the relationship to lie or be unfaithful. Although technically this is a “good” generalization because girls are seen as the “good guy,” women carry the pressure on their shoulders that if we ever break a rule or make a mistake, the world is going to end, due to the social norm that women are always suppose to be well-behaved. As for men, they are depicted as jerks who do not know how to treat a girl when they are in a relationship. They “drink beer with the guys and chase after girls” disregarding the fact that a woman could like to drink beer and even go for the girls or even that a man could chase after boys. Instead of pushing back against traditional ideas about masculinity and femininity, there is definitely a reinforcement of these traditional ideas, and it is excluding anyone who exists outside of the gender binary.
Prompt 3: I think that this specific representation of gender in pop culture has definitely impacted the way I think about my own gender identity and expression because I completely disagree with how my gender is being portrayed. Women are allowed to break the rules and should get the same reaction as a man who breaks the rules. I do not believe that because I am a girl, I am suppose to be at the feet of my partner, a man, while he makes the rules as he goes, like mentioned in the song. So many years of being expected to act a certain way, for BOTH men and women, and we still see social norms about gender appearing in songs of the 21st century.
Prompt 4: In terms of Wendy Griswold’s cultural diamond, the cultural object would be the song I chose which is “If I Were a Boy” by Beyonce. The social world in which the cultural object exists and acts would be America in the 21st century. As the artist, Beyonce would be considered the producer/creator of the cultural object. The final part of the Wendy Griswold’s cultural diamond would be the intended audience which, in this case, would be women. The artist's song is a reflection of her experiences and desires while at the same time, a reflection of the intended audience(women) desires. The desire to not allow lying, cheating men, as they are portrayed in the song, to treat women like they do because like Beyonce sings, "But you're just a boy, you don't understand how to love a girl someday" assuming that all boys are the same.
Hi Mayrene,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, this is such a great song and makes a perfect example for a cultural artifact. Beyonce made such a statement with this song for all the women and I am glad because this demonstrates the struggle we face. I definitely agree with your ideas, like you stated, we live in the 21st century and yet women are still being depicted with the same image. We are not expected to be able to do the same things as the men because we are so accustom to the traditional norms that women are suppose to follow. If we break these norms, we sometimes are not even applaud for it but are criticized and not just by the males but from other females too that are still choosing to follow the traditional ideas of femininity. Of course it is also, important for us to realize that the norms have changed not just for the women but for the men as well. Great job, I really enjoyed reading it.
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DeleteBeyonce's song "If I Were a Boy" is a great example about breaking the gender binary. Though she is singing from a girl's perspective, her lyrics tell what she thinks men do. There are accuracies to it, considering she talks about wearing whatever she wants and doing whatever she wants. She also speaks about how she would treat a girl if she was a boy, kinda foretelling how she believes boys treat her. Through telling this, she does express the traditional ideas of femininity by taking a stand against them. She does a great job in the song by explaining the struggles women face when it comes to being well, women. I also liked how you said these expectations are destructive to women. Very true.
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