Was there anything the least bit attractive about the live performance by Miley Cyrus at the MTV music awards a while back? I don't believe so, in fact there is not much that I find attractive about Miley Cyrus at all. Is this because she is unattractive in the physical sense? Well objectively I don't think so, but let me explain...
I don't need to go into detail about what we see in the modern pop music industry today as it is pretty self-evident. It doesn't take watching too many video clips or much deep investigation into any of the lyrics to popular songs at the moment to give you an indication of where it's all at.
Yet despite the highly sexualized themes and the current 'live for the moment - don't care about the future' partymentality, what's just as concerning for me is the idea that flaunting a woman's sexuality and promoting her sexual desirability is somehow being viewed as empowerment.
It is quite clear that women have a sexual power, they are indeed desirable to men. The majority of the advertising and marketing industry relies on this fact alone. You want to sell a product? Get a good looking woman to stand next to it, the more of her body you show the more attention it's going to receive. A. Because men are visual creatures and the sight of an attractive woman for most men is very hard to ignore. Us men are wired in a specific way, that way being we are visual creatures, women are also, just not to the same extent.
And B. The flip side of this being that promotion of highly attractive women produces insecurity in a lot of women, these insecurities are expected and it is what drives the sale of makeup, fashions and lifestyle accessories. Beauty magazines for example are not so much magazines that display and celebrate the beauty of women as they are intelligent marketing brochures aimed at selling products to women, I could go into this in much more detail, however I don't have the time to go into it here, in a future post maybe?
Women's sexual power
But back to point, women do have a sexual power, as men do also. They have the power to seduce men (some men with fortitude and strength of character not so much) but whether used good or bad it is a power nonetheless. Some have the ability to make weak willed men to go weak at the knees with a mere look or suggestive dance.
Now a trend I see currently and one which was driven home by a member of the Pussy Cat Dolls years ago, Jessica Sutta who stated in regards to her music, that "we are all about female empowerment". Now I will try and keep my tongue out of my cheek as much as possible here but if this particular brand of sassy, 'women in charge' pop is all about empowering women, why is it that in every film clip or performance they are all dressed in lingerie, leather or anything else that would otherwise draw attention to their feminine forms? If this so called 'empowerment' is exactly that, why can't you empower women with a decent amount of clothes on?
Using one's body to attract, hold men in sway or otherwise arouse them in my book is not true empowerment, it is a false empowerment that reduces both sexes to the lowest common denominator - base human urges and visual attraction. Is it truly empowerment if the only power it gives one the power of seduction and attention gained from men driven to attention by their biological urges?
I mean, let's call it for what it is, let's not mask seduction and using one's body or sexuality for fame or attention as one of true empowerment because it isn't. It's a lie that is designed to actually make you LESS of woman not more of one. True empowerment is not gaining sway and attention through the display and posture of one's body it is knowing who you are, knowing your true worth and making life choices from a standpoint of value and security.
The sad part of this though is that the majority of this pop candy is eaten up by young girls, tweens and teens and it is dangerous. Societal pressures on women to be attractive, alluring and successful have never been higher than they are today and the music industry is one of the main protagonists - all for the accumulation of filthy lucre. How does a girl needing or wanting love behave? What should she promote in order to get her love tank filled? How does she increase her confidence and build her self worth? How does she feel wanted?
Candy
The MTV music industry provides an answer, sadly it is the same answer as the brand of music is promotes, candy. An instant sugary and shallow fix but one that will ultimately leave you feeling empty and sick. This answer for women to use their bodies and their sexual allurement to pump up their sense of self worth to the point of feeling empowered is only a short term solution. What it does is cheapen them, it boils them down to commodities. If you are using your body to draw attention to yourself that's what people will notice at the end of the day, not what you say or think, that will only be tacked on as a secondary (if at all).
Is Miley Cyrus writhing around on a dirty floor with mushed up bread really empowering herself or helping women in general? YouTube her film clip 'Can't Stop' Then tell me honestly, is there anything attractive about a 20 something woman posturing herself like 'a dude' while sticking out her tongue and winking like a five year old, intertwined with scenes of her gyrating on a bed like an animal on heat? Personally I would have to say no.
You may have the right to party and do what you want Miley, anybody in a free country with a few dollars in their back pocket has the same ability but is your right to 'party it up not giving a ____'really the best message you have to pass on to a younger generation that looks up to you? I'm pretty sure most teenagers know how to "party" without being shown how.
There are so many catch phrases spouted by these celebrities that would seek you to ignore their actions as if they were non consequential, "Only God can judge me" being one of the most popular. They promote so many self damaging messages to youth then claim no responsibility for that message whatsoever. Their record sales rely mostly on the impressionable minds of teenagers but then they step back when they are called role models and disassociate when the results of their pop mantras are played out in reality, those being promiscuity/pregnancy, drug use/abuse - whatever the issues may be.
Dose of reality
Maybe it's time for these people to get a dose of reality because if God did judge them righteously(and they claim he's the only one who can)they would be weighed and found wanting. It would not only be a judgment on the outward expression of their lifestyle and message but a deep searching of the motives and condition of their own heart and would be much, much more of an unpleasant experience than the shallow observances of the masses.
I have seen the true condition of my own messed up heart in only ONE area of my life, seeing that part of me fully exposed as it truly was caused so much angst it was too much for me to bear, I instantly fell into an anxiety attack and started to fall headlong into hell itself and would have continued to fall were it not for a friend close by to pull me out. Without Christ my mediator I would rather men judge me to be honest, because they do not know the extent of my wrongness, my secret sins and motives are hidden from them (and sometimes even from myself) whereas God knows ALL of them.
To be continued in part 2...
Tim Everton is a youth worker and child carer who has recently returned home to Adelaide after a few years of experiencing the sights and sounds of Melbourne. In his off-time he pursues graphic design, photography and enjoys the beach and seeking out the next best cafe latte both in equal measure.
Tim Everton's previous articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/tim-everton.html