Hypermasculinity in Country Music

            In the Friday’s lecture, we discussed the media’s obsession with masculinity and what lengths the media goes through to portray what it means to be “manly.” Specifically, we talked about Tupac and, consequently, looked at this topic through the lens of hip hop and rap music.

            Through this lens, we noticed not only through the lyrics of the rap music but also visual ways in which young men in this industry exercise the “cool pose.” Most of these things centered around a gangster lifestyle such as hand signals, tattoos, and gun usage. All of these things show that the man is strong and a threat.

            However, this lecture got me to thinking how these kind of hypermasculine trends are especially apparent in country songs as well. They too have a “cool pose” that they believe shows they are superior and a threat. However, it has more to do with concepts such as hard working man, an outdoorsmen, or man that fights for their country. Some things that portray this “cool pose” are muscles, flannel shirts, work boots, facial hair, cowboy hats, and guns.

            Additionally, countless country songs, mostly by male artists, touch on themes of violence, being tough or strong, or being able to attract women. Many songs pride the themselves on their man hood. One great example of this is Brad Paisley’s song, “I’m Still a Guy.” This song is all about how even though he is in love with a woman; he will never be any less of a man’s man. This is evident in the lyrics “Yeah, with all of these men linin' up to get neutered, It's hip now to be feminized, But I don't highlight my hair, I've still got a pair, Yeah honey, I'm still a guy.”
            Masculinity and hypermasculinty is seen in many different types of music. Men are showed to be tough, strong, brave, violent, and threatening. However, depending on what genre it is, the  way in which the “cool pose” is demonstrated differs.

I have posted the entire song, “I’m still a Guy” below.

When you see a deer, you see BambiAnd I see antlers up on the wall

When you see a lake you think picnics

And I see a large mouth up under that log
You're probably thinkin' that you're gonna change meI

n some ways, well, maybe you mightScrub me down, dress me upOh, but no matter what, remember,

 I'm still a guy
When you see a priceless friend's painting

I see a drunk naked girl

When you think that riding a wild bull sounds crazy

And I'd like to give it a whirl
Well, love makes a man do some things he ain't proud of

And in a weak moment I mightWalk your sissie dog, hold your purse at the mall

But remember, I'm still a guy
And I'll pour out my heart, hold your hand in the car

Write a love song that makes you cry

Then turn right around, knock some jerk to the ground

'Cause he copped a feel as you walked by
I can hear you now talkin' to your friends

Sayin' yeah, girls he's come a long way

From draggin' his knuckles and carryin' a club

And buildin' a fire in a cave
But when you say a back rub means only a back rub

Then you swat my hand when I try

Well, now what can I say at the end of the day

Honey, I'm still a guy
And I'll pour out my heart, hold your hand in the car

Write a love song that makes you cry

Then turn right around knock some jerk to the ground'

Cause he copped a feel as you walked by
These days there's dudes gettin' facials

Manicured, waxed and botoxed

With deep spray-on tans and creamy lotiony hands

You can't grip a tackle box
Yeah, with all of these men linin' up to get neutered

It's hip now to be feminized

But I don't highlight my hair, I've still got a pair

Yeah honey, I'm still a guy
Oh, my eyebrows ain't plucked, there's a gun in my truck

Oh thank God, I'm still a guy

Media Framing and the Selection of Newsworthy Events

 Monday’s reading discussed the media’s role in the way the American public view the news, specifically the Matthew Shepard Murder. The article refers to this situation as media framing or how the media defines an event and how that definition shapes the public’s opinion. 

            In class, we discussed that because this case got so much media attention, Matthew Shepard was transformed into a matyr, Henderson and McKinney were ruthless and barbaric scumbags, and the nation was suddenly very sympathetic of hate crimes against homosexuals.

            However, all of these polarizing new feelings were only the result of the way the media plotted the story to the American public. Once the evil McKinney and Henderson were behind bars, it was as if everything was back in balance and the drive for laws against hate crimes was suddenly forgotten.

            I see this trend and agree that the media definitely has a huge role in how Americans view news because, essentially, they are the gatekeepers of the information. However, because I am a journalism student and learn in other classes how to pick newsworthy events, I am conflicted by the negative connotation that this process is given in this particular class.

            There are so many things that happen nationwide everyday and it is impossible for everything to get proper news coverage. That is why there is such a selection process.

            I think that the Matthew Shepard case was a newsworthy event because it had elements of proximity, timeliness, conflict, controversy, and loss of life. It took place in typical small town USA however everything in the story was already so extreme. The victim was so innocent and fragile and the antagonists were so ignorant, brutal, and cruel.  

            I think that is unfortunate how content the American public was after the murderers were convicted and how motivation for the new hate crime bills was lost. However, I do not think the media has as much as a manipulative agenda as it is made up to have. I believe that they have to select stories in which they think are the most newsworthy and that people have a want and need to know. 

The Rise of Girl Power in Children's Television

            Sarah Banet-Weiser’s article, “Girl’s Rule!: Gender, Feminism, and Nickelodeon,” discussed the rise of “girl power” in children’s television programming. Specifically noted were the shows Clarissa Explains It All, As Told By Ginger, and Nick News on Nickelodeon.

            Banet-Weiser explains that these shows were revolutionary because of a combination of their strong female roles, popular themes and topics not previously discussed, and their appeal to both girls and boys.

            I am a little too young to remember Clarissa but I definitely remember the other two shows and a whole slew of others that featured strong female character that were feisty, opinionated, adventurous, and gave the boys a run for their money. However, while recalling these shows, I not only thought about Nickelodeon but the Disney channel as well.

            The Disney Channel is home to shows that also have strong female leads. One that comes to mind right away is Kim Possible. This show stars a teenage girl that not only has to deal with the typical problems of school, family, and friends, but also is a crime fighter. Kim is portrayed as brave, strong, and quick-thinking in her quest to always catch the bad guy. These are traits that break the typical female stereotype.

            A more recent show that is relevant to this topic is Wizards of Waverly Place, starring Selena Gomez. Gomez plays Alex Russo, a witty and sarcastic teen that is always stirring trouble. Alex contrasts greatly with the typical innocent and compliant female character. She is stubborn and has an act now and think about it later philosophy.

            I think that children’s shows nowadays do a great job of offering a variety of female lead characters; one for every girl to relate too. The theme of “girl power” is more relevant than ever in television programming.

Princess Culture and its Role in Gender Identity

Because just this weekend, I bought 15 yards of yellow tulle to make myself a Princess Belle costume for Halloween and had a Disney Princess key made for our new house, I feel like this topic is very relevant to me.

            I have always been a sucker for the classic Disney fairytale and, consequently, the mounds of merchandise that accompanies it. I feel like it is a right of passage for little girls and is a phase everyone goes through.

            With this said, I agree with Annie Murphy Paul, author of “Is Pink Necessary?” when she says that all of this pink and fluff helps lock in a girl’s gendered identity from an early age. This relationship is indirect because the girls do not purposely seek this result but it happens all the same. Glitter and pink and princess is what is expected of the gender role of that age. It is what the market offers them and, not surprisingly, it is the role many young girls assume.

            On the other hand, the next article, “Princess culture turning girls into overspending narcissists,” jumps to rash conclusions that I cannot support. Joanne Laucius’s article claims that the princess culture that girls embrace in their childhood leads to them growing up “to be insufferable adolescents and adults who demand constant adulation and access to a bottomless pot of money.” She makes this assumption on the claim that one of the three elements of being a princess “is being in charge.”

            I disagree with this concept entirely. First, I think that although children love the merchandise that accompanies the “princess culture,” they don’t always realize the money involved. As a child matures, their understanding of dollar matures. A girl who was raised to love the princess culture is not doomed to narcissism. A girl that is raised with a lavish lifestyle in which she gets whatever she wants is another story. Lifestyle in general determines results like that, not a childhood love of all things princesses.

             

Facebook and Loneliness

So I do not really know what I am doing with this whole blog thing, but I would like to discuss the two Facebook articles we were assigned to read.

            The first one argued that Facebook is making society, as a whole, lonelier and complacent with being lonely. Stephen Marche, the author, argues, “we live in an accelerating contradiction.” The more Facebook friends we have, the more disconnected we are. He then proceeds to make wide generalizations about facets of American history  and culture. He explains that cowboys who set out to explore the frontier favored their self-pride over their personal relationships. Similarly, he discussed the importance of astronauts in our society and how we view them, in general, as heroes. That’s obviously wrong because in reality, they are selfish loners that didn’t want to be around other humans so they left planet earth. In this portion of his article, he took typical American heroes, picked one aspect of their stereotypical lifestyles, and made them seem self-indulgent. He then linked their self-indulgence to loneliness to make his point that we, as a society, are becoming more lonely and Facebook is really speeding up the process.

            I think that Facebook does have the ability to make people complacent with only fostering relationships through the Internet. However, more often than not, I think that Facebook allows people that would not normally keep up with each other’s lives the opportunity to do so. This tie may make conversation easier when there is face to face contact.

            With this said, I did strongly agree with second article by Katie Roiphe. As much as we may feel connected with various people in our lives, we may never know how accurate the image of them that Facebook perceives really is. This is because people’s posts and pictures are often very choreographed and staged. Because Facebook allows such a narrow portal into lives, it is somewhat easily controlled and people want to make sure they are presenting the best of what they have to offer.

            Personally, I don’t know how conscience I am at staging my Facebook page to make me appear cool or whatever else. If anything, I am more awkward and random than I am in real life. I never post statuses or pictures anymore. So the majority of the things on my page are what others have tagged me in or posted directly on my wall. None of these things provide an actual interpretation to my real life. In fact, they mostly surround some of my pop culture obsessions or cute Pintrest ideas that people for some reason want me to see.

            I don’t think Facebook is necessarily making us more complacent with lonlieness. But I do think it gives us the wrong interpretation of people’s everyday lives.