“A diva is a female version of a hustler (Knowles, 2008).”

Diva

Above is the link to one of Beyoncé’s newer singles Diva. This particular video is interesting because the introduction that defines diva and the rest of the video & the song’s lyrics seem to conflict. The introduction defines “diva” as “a successful and glamorous female performer or personality” and “a female singer who has achieved popularity”. The song, however, defines a “diva” as “a female version of a hustler”. One definition adheres to gender role expectations of women and the other compares and suggests that women are just as capable of men. The video and song conflict with the traditional gender stereotypes of a woman that have been studied (Gamble, 2003).

Even throughout the video, Beyoncé flits back and forth between a nearly shapeless figure and a futuristic woman–the shapeless woman fitting in with the hustler image in an effort to downplay sex and gender, whereas the futuristic woman is still clearly a woman (if only a woman who downplays beauty and enhances a harsh masculine attitude). It’s really confusing, in terms of gender. Is she a force to be reckoned with cause she’ll light your car on fire if you cross her path? Or is she a glamorous, popular singer? Maybe she’s both, but it sure is a bit confusing.

Knowles, B. (Writer). (2008). Diva. Music video. New York, NY: Sony Music Entertainment.

Gamble, T. K., & Gamble, M. W. (2003). The Gender Communication Connection. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.

Again with the homophobias and I can’t come up with a quoted title at the moment to go with the rest of my gender blogs for the portfolio

Here’s a video that was posted by some of my residents last semester (they were so proud of them when I first met them (I’m a mid-year hire)). It features them in their own version of a music video to the song What Hurts the Most by Rascal Flatts. The begin arguing at a conference table while one boy slumps in his seat, sad. As the video ebbs on, a romantic relationship is revealed… between two boys (not that this is a bad thing). They also look like Backstreet Boys with their suit jackets on. <3

Despite the fact that they make fun of a favorite song of mine, it’s intriguing they way they’ve put this imaginary relationship together. After peeling away the top layers of their concept, you can see where there’s issues of homophobia (because the two boys aren’t public about their relationship) and Willie finds Andy making out with a girl after screening his calls. Willie stalks away and slaps Andy for cheating and being insensitive, and also for denying his attraction to guys. Knowing the boys that put this whole video together, they weren’t trying to deliberately make fun of being a homosexual, but they’ve come up with this performance that shows how society can effect someone’s actions if that person thinks that society won’t like what they’re doing–meaning that Andy was making out with a girl because that’s an acceptable thing to do for a guy, whereas being homosexual can still be considered a taboo subject in different areas of the country because it goes against the traditional gender norms for a man (Gamble, 2003).

Gamble, T. K., & Gamble, M. W. (2003). The Gender Communication Connection. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.

Morgan, T. (Director & Producer). (2008). 3 East Boyz: What hurts the most. YouTube.com, See link above to YouTube video.

“Three ingredients are necessary to nurture a romantic relationship: commitment…, passion…, and intimacy…(Gamble, 2003)(p.166).”

Love Story

Taylor Swift is America’s sweetheart. She lulls us into her world of love, heartbreak, and happiness with every note she sings. It started with Tim McGraw, and now we’re hooked on her one of her most recent hits, Love Story. The song is about two young lovers in a Romeo & Juliet type of situation that takes place in their small town. The parents don’t want the relationship to happen, but despite everything, their love prevails, just like a fairy tale. In the official music video, Swift portrays the song just like a fairy tale as well. She’s dressed in a beautiful, old fashioned gown standing in a castle-type setting, waiting for her perfect Romeo. It’s all about emotional intimacy and commitment.

If only real life was like that, but of course, all her songs are based on true stories. Of course, it seems like this type of story could never really be possible, or could it? In the text, the authors reference three ingredients that need to be present in a relationship in order for it to be a success, at least, according to researcher Robert Sternberg (Gamble, 2003). They say that you need commitment, passion, and intimacy (Gamble, 2003). According to the text, commitment would be the “expectation of a relationship permanence… even if trouble occurs (p.166)”, passion would be “intensely positive feelings of attraction that increase you desire to be with the other person (p.166)”, and intimacy which is “sustained feelings of closeness and connection (p.166)”. In this song, Swift portrays a relationship that seems to have all of the three ingredients to make it last, so maybe it’s not so much of a fairy tale, after all.

Fanjoy, T. (Director), & Swift, T. (Writer). (2008). Love Story. Music Video. Nashville, TN: Big Machine Records.

Gamble, T. K., & Gamble, M. W. (2003). The Gender Communication Connection. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.