The F-word discussion

Lily Allen has a new music video that's got a lot of people talking; have you seen it? What are your thoughts?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0CazR...


Lyrics:

"Hard Out Here"

I suppose I should tell you what this bitch is thinking
You'll find me in the studio and not in the kitchen
I won't be bragging 'bout my cars or talking 'bout my chains
Don't need to shake my ass for you 'cause I've got a brain

If I told you 'bout my sex life, you'd call me a slut
When boys be talking about their bitches, no one's making a fuss
There's a glass ceiling to break, uh-huh, there's money to make
And now it's time to speed it up 'cause I can't move at this pace

[Bridge]
Sometimes it's hard to find the words to say
I'll go ahead and say them anyway
Forget your balls and grow a pair of tits

[Chorus]
It's hard, it's hard, it's hard out here for a bitch
It's hard, for a bitch (for a bitch)
For a bitch, it's hard
It's hard out here for a bitch
It's hard, for a bitch (for a bitch)
For a bitch, it's hard
It's hard out here

You're not a size six, and you're not good looking
Well, you better be rich, or be real good at cooking
You should probably lose some weight
'Cause we can't see your bones
You should probably fix your face or you'll end up on your own

Don't you want to have somebody who objectifies you?
Have you thought about your butt? Who's gonna tear it in two?
We've never had it so good, uh-huh, we're out of the woods
And if you can't detect the sarcasm, you've misunderstood

[Bridge]

[Chorus]

A bitch, a bitch, a bitch, bitch, bitch [x4]

Inequality promises that it's here to stay
Always trust the injustice 'cause it's not going away
Inequality promises that it's here to stay
Always trust the injustice 'cause it's not going away

[Bridge]

[Chorus x2]

I love the intended message in the video.

The dancing on the video seems to play into the hands of the very male oppressors that Lily Allen is railing against... except for the clever and amusing inclusion of the older man in the suit trying to show the women how to move.

I would have liked to see that parody play out.

I think Lily Allen differentiates herself from Miley Cyrus and other young female stars who claim that their overt sexuality demonstrates their feminist choices. I get what they (Miley, etc.) are saying, and, in a perfect world, they might be right, but in this one, I don't think their actions play out the way they suppose or would like them to.

I'm new to the group and would be interested in hearing what others have to say about the video.

"I'm giving it an 8 because it's got a good beat and you can dance to it."

You may be too young to remember "American Bandstand" with hip young women dancing in their white go-go boots and polyester miniskirts. The male oppressors were put on notice! (As they were zillions of times in the past.)

Not much has changed, has it? I am always torn when I see messages against female oppression that include the same images the message refutes. Yes, there is the argument that by "owning" the clothes, movements and the mannerisms pushed upon women that we transform that stereotype and gain power from it.

That argument becomes more difficult to take after decades in which the oppression remains essentially unchanged.

I would have loved to see some type of transformation of the costumes and dancing as the song progressed.

The thought I had as I watched the video, "They are having it both ways - condemning the attitudes while using the visual stereotypes to hook the audience that doesn't respond to the lyrics."

On the other hand, "inequality is here to stay" so why not cash in?

Inequality is here to stay, perhaps, but I still hope we can resist cashing in on it... although maybe to some extent we need to.

Inspired in part for Lily Allen's song and in part by the recent How the Media Portrays Women video, here is my latest blog post about Elizabeth Weston, a poet in the 1600s who also struggled with acceptance from the powers-that-be.

Westonia, as she was called, definitely had to cash in and play up her feminine traits to overcome her presence in the male dominated world of neo-Latin poets.

http://theriddleofprague.com/blog/

I just saw the music video. I must say I understand what she is trying to portray. I've never understood women like Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, Kim k, and Emily ratkjowski. They say their for women's rights, but here they butt-naked on t.v. appealing more men then women.