Alex Mejia<\/p>\n
December 17, 2015<\/p>\n
Conflicts and Culture in America<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
What does Madonna, Lauper, and Lennox Got To Do With It<\/p>\n
\u201cThe meaning of music videos has been thought to present a puzzle… Time unfolds unpredictably and without clear reference points\u2026 A video will hint at a character\u2019s personality, mood, goals, or desires but will never fully disclose them\u201d (Experiencing Music Videos <\/em>37). Most songs tend to be about three to four minutes, giving artists that amount of time to tell a story in whichever manner they please. Some people would describe the \u201880s as a period \u201cwhen there was a lot of shock factors\u2026 especially with the dynamic changes in technology with the evolution of the personal computer, the changes in media and entertainment with MTV and the change in moral views, including the sexual revolution and the paranoia of killer AIDs\u201d (Mejia, Richard). The artists took the opportunity to push social boundaries and question social norms through their music in a more non-traditional approach (Interview). In closely examining the music videos \u201cLike a Prayer\u201d by Madonna, \u201cSweat Dreams\u201d by Eurythmics and \u201cGirls Just Want to Have Fun\u201d by Cyndi Lauper, the artists contribute to and promote the sexual revolution of women by redefining what it means to be a woman<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A new cable channel was born on August 1, 1981: Music Television (MTV) that combined television and music into one (Lewis, 1990). Initially, MTV was seen as, \u201c\u2026 a 24-hour, commercial cable channel, beamed via satellite across the United States and was devoted to presenting rock music videos around the clock\u201d, but in reality it did more than that (Kaplan, 1987, 1). It can be argued that MTV had postmodernism characteristics because the youth of America were drawn to MTV for exemplifying a new stream of consciousness; of not wanting to follow a traditional path and wanting society to become more contemporary. This mindset and attitude fueled the women\u2019s sexual revolution that started in the 1970s and then carried into the 1980s (Kaplan, 1987). By promoting artists such as Madonna and Cyndi Lauper who advocated equality and recognition for women through their music, can be concluded that MTV made a strong contribution to the development of women in society and in turn society itself.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When Madonna, one of the most iconic figures in the 1980s, became popular it was said that, \u201cthis kid is wild\u201d but also a great performer (Mejia, Richard). To this day many people do not only discuss her musical contributions but also how Madonna represented herself as a woman in the 80s. She was known for \u201cgender bending\u201d because she was not afraid to be very sexual or appear in crazy and exotic costumes when she performed (Duke, 1996, 124-125). Madonna did not believe in constraining herself by any social norms but rather she chose to be independent by not letting anyone control her image, which was uncommon in the 80s (Duke, 1996). In her music video \u201cLike a Prayer\u201d, Madonna wears a dress that almost looks like lingerie in a chapel with a Black Jesus who comes alive and then proceeds to share a kiss with him. All three events would be described as shocking, especially during a time when Reagan was espousing family traditions and values. Part of maintaining a conservative society would not allow women to be dressed in clothing that could be viewed as too risqu\u00e9, such as the dress Madonna wears in this video. Also kissing someone of color on television in the 80s was unheard of and made people uncomfortable but Madonna is demonstrating that women should be given the sexual freedom of who they want to be intimate with, even if it goes against cultural norms.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n From an early age it was apparent that Annie Lennox did not follow a traditional path; a couple weeks before her final exams Lennox dropped out of college and pursued her career in music. In 1980, Dave Stewart and she formed the Eurythmics and three years later came out with \u201cSweat Dreams,\u201d where Lennox made it clear that she was the only one in control of her image. Especially during this era where there was pressure on women to maintain a certain image and desiring to break free, Lennox wanted to be perceived in a different manner, she \u201c\u2026did not want to be pigeon-holed into neatly defined pop categories. She was uncomfortable with the sexism inherent in the pop industry of the early 1980s, and unwilling to put herself on sexual display\u201d (Rodger, 2004, 18). Unlike Madonna who contributed to feminism and sexual oppression by representing herself as a sex symbol, Lennox wanted to dissociate herself from sexuality. It can be further explained in Sweet Dreams<\/em> music video, the audience can see her distancing herself away from the gender the social norms of appearance by not only cutting her hair short but also dying it orange. Then later she and Stewart are wearing matching suits but Lennox reveals hint of \u201cfemininity\u201d by wearing red lipstick and makeup. A woman wearing men\u2019s clothing in the 80s was not the norm and many were surprised to see this but Lennox dressed as a man to embody strong male emotions such as anger. Also in the song, she plays with her voice to make it sound indistinctive to the audience. The mixture of \u201cthis vocal ambiguity and Lennox\u2019s gender ambiguity combined to pose serious threat to gender construction of the 1980s, and particularly those present in pop music\u201d (Rodger, 2004, 20). It is as though Lennox is questioning why does there need be these distinct social differences of what it means to be a man and a woman but more important is that women can be more than just a sexual object. One can still be considered feminine without having to be sexual and have qualities that are masculine such as anger. Also Lennox not following the traditional attire of a woman, the media assumed that she was a lesbian but with frustration she would say, \u201cI am very feminine. I am not gay. But I feel as a woman, sometimes, very masculine, powerful\u201d (Rodger, 2004, 21). Society views those types of characteristics as associated with a male and being powerful is not a characteristic for a woman. And in this case if a woman tried to acquire those traits, people automatically think that the lady was a lesbian.<\/p>\n Another important aspect of the \u201cSweat Dreams\u201d video to address is in the beginning Lennox hits the boardroom table with a riding crop and continues to do so to keep the beat. In many music videos of the \u201880s, women artists would keep the rhythm using their bodies in a more sexual manner but instead Lennox does it in a more \u201cfreer gender roles\u201d by using the crop (Vernallis, 2004, 172). There is this reoccurring theme of distancing herself from gender based norms of sexuality and incorporated them into her own persona.<\/p>\n Although Cyndi Lauper came onto the scene towards the end of the \u201870s and the feminist movement, in the \u201880s she showed her interpretation of the new women: \u201ca woman identified stance\u201d (Kaplan, 1987, 127). Through her music she wanted to give everyone a voice. Lauper most infamous video, \u201cGirls Just want to Have Fun\u201d can be seen as, \u201cthe year 1983 makes a watershed in the history of female-address video. It is the year that certain issues and representations began to gain saliency and the textual strategies of female address began to coalesce\u201d (Lewis, 1990, 117). Kaplan, author of Rocking Around the Clock<\/em>, out of his five categories of how to describe MTV music videos, labels \u201cGirls Just Want to Have Fun\u201d as Social Conscious Under this category the video needs to contain love\/sex that is portrayed as either a type of love is seen as problematic or there a desire for autonomy and cultural critique of authority of a public figure or parent (Lewis, 1990). The video embodies all three aspects by showing Lauper\u2019s desire of wanting to have autonomy from her parents and in society. In the video it demonstrates this negative dynamic between young adults and parents was a common theme in the \u201880s, as\u201d\u2026 anti-parental sentiments, often expressed in deliberating ridicule of adults\u201d (Lewis, 1990, 127). Each parent scolds her for not following social norms of being a girl in the \u201880s but she doesn\u2019t agree and remains doing as she pleases.<\/p>\n As seen with the first two music videos by Madonna and Annie Lennox, \u201cmusic videos also reflect gender stereotypes\u201d (Vernallis, 2004, 82). Many videos of \u201880s video of female artists, portrayed women in a more domestic setting such as a bedroom or in the house which would fit perfectly to this notion that music videos are another way of commenting on society. According to the author of Experiencing Music Videos, <\/em>this portrayal of women and domesticity could have an array of significance such as, \u201c\u2026 from sexual provocation to revelation of a woman\u2019s private space and parody of domesticity\u201d (Vernallis, 2004, 82). In the beginning scene of Cyndi Lauper video, \u201cGirls Just Want to Have Fun,\u201d she takes a more parody approach; her mother is sitting in the kitchen, cooking breakfast waiting for Cyndi to come home. The video is about her coming home from being out late, then having a slight argument with her parents, then goes outside with her friends, dances in public and then brings everyone over. One of the most important elements of the music video is when Lauper and her friends walk around the city, essentially \u201c\u2026 claiming it as their own\u201d (Vernallis, 2004, 82). It goes back to this idea that women or girls\u2019 place is in the more private domestic sphere and by showing them with this persona of freely walking around the streets, indicates that women can belong in a the public sphere. Especially when they walk by the construction area, where on many occasions women get harassed and not seen as safe, the girls establish their territory by confidently continuing on their way (Lewis, 1990, 118-119). Unlike Madonna and Annie Lennox, Cyndi Lauper took a more playful manner, catchy and subtle way to advocate women\u2019s equality.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The overall women\u2019s sexual revolution in the \u201880s can be understood and seen through the music videos shown on MTV. Many of the female artists such as Annie Lennox, Madonna, and Cyndi Lauper used not only their music but also their social status to represent the girls and women in American who did not have a voice. As stated above, all three artists agreed that women should be viewed and treated as equal but they all concentrated on different aspects of the women sexual revolution. Many of their videos had some shocking elements especially for that time period but that is how they got their messages across. These female artists wanted to spark a conversation and open people\u2019s eyes that women need to be recognized that women are human beings too. After researching about female music videos and the social impact, it made me rethink the first written assignment we had in the beginning of the year. I focused mainly on the epidemic of AIDS and how far medicine has excelled, but America has also had a lot of improvements with gender equality. Sad to say that there are still a lot of problems that our society has not fixed but if it was not for the feminism movement and women artist activists in the 1980s, I don\u2019t think we would be were we are today. As I have said before that there was not just one event that can be used to describe the \u201880s but if I had to choose one word, it would have to be shocking. Furthermore, the events that occurred in the \u201880s such as Annie Lennox wearing a suit or Madonna kissing a Black men were shocking to the people that experienced live in that decade but for me, who has been studying about the \u201880s, thinks that the way people reacted was shocking. As an American women living in the 21st<\/sup> century, I give thanks to female artist who pushed the social envelope and got the older generation to learn to accept women for who they are. If it were not for people strongly advocated for equality, as today society we would not have women CEO or women holding high political positions in government. Before writing this paper I honestly was not aware how strong of an influence MTV, music, and the overall media affected the advancements of women in society. Usually when I listen to \u201coldies\u201d music, I would never sat back and just listen to the words and exactly what they were trying to portray in their music or videos because the music was so enjoyable to dance and sing along to. But now after this class, I can appreciate Madonna or Cyndi Lauper more not just as an artist but also as women who had an agenda to fulfill.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Work Cited<\/p>\n Goodwin, Andrew. Dancing in Music Television and Popular Culture: The Distraction Factory<\/em>. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1992.<\/p>\n