What men want, America delivers [View all]
In his single “Blurred Lines,” Robin Thicke sings soulfully about giving a good girl what she really wants—buckwild sex—even if she can’t come out and admit it. It’s a catchy enough song. Some might even call it this summer’s anthem. But “Blurred Lines” is also a song that revisits the age-old belief that sometimes when a woman says no she really means yes.
Critics have been vocal about the sexual violence undertones in the song and they’re not wrong. Robin just knows you want it, girl. He just does, so shut up and let him give it to you. Scores of men and women are, apparently, on board. “Blurred Lines” is Thicke’s most popular song to date. In his latest single, “Give it 2 U,” Thicke doubles down on his bad boy phase with the lyrics “I got this for you / a little Thicke for you / A big kiss for you / I got a hit for you / Big dick for you / Let me give it to you.” In the wake of the criticism, Thicke is fairly unapologetic, saying, “Women and their bodies are beautiful. Men are always gonna want to follow them around.”
I guess that’s that. Men want what they want.
In truth, I like these songs. They make me want to dance. I want to sing along. They are delightful pop confections. But. I enjoy the songs the way I have to enjoy most music—I have to forget I am a sentient being. I have to lighten up.
Take Kanye West’s recently released “Yeezus.” It’s very compelling and ambitious, with sounds that are aggressive if not hostile. I’ve been listening to the album on repeat. I want to love Yeezus but I can’t because I hear lyrics like, “You see it’s leaders and it’s followers / But I’d rather be a dick than a swallower.” Kanye’s disdain for women overwhelms nearly every track — but then there’s a song like “Blood on the Leaves,” which is so outstanding you can’t possibly dismiss the album.
This is just music, right? These artists are merely expressing themselves.
The debate over rape jokes continues. My overall stance is pretty well documented, but as a writer, I recognize the necessity of creative freedom. I have finally heard funny rape jokes — Ever Mainard’s joke about the fear instilled in women and the assumption of the inevitability of rape and Wanda Sykes’s joke about wanting a detachable vagina. I still hate rape jokes but I hate censorship more. I hate that I have to choose.
more at link:
http://www.salon.com/2013/07/05/what_men_want_america_delivers/
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