Degendering Dance… and Some History » Sociological Images
How is this a great example of how dancing doesn’t have to be sexualized or gendered by movement or attire?
What choices does Janelle make that emphasize talent, skill, and high quality art?
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This video is a great example of how dancing doesn't have to be sexualized or gendered by movement or attire for starters because the men and women are all dressed the same. You hardly ever see music videos where the men and women are dressed the same. Usually the men are dressed normally and the women are dressed in revealing clothing. This video makes the men and women equal.
ReplyDeleteAbout the dancing, there is nothing sexualized or gendered about this video in any way. The dancing is more unique and talented compared to most videos where a woman is usually just dancing provocatively on a man.
This video just shows that its ok to put a video out there that doesn't have to have sexual and gendered dancing or attire.
Emily Eyler
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ReplyDeleteThis is a good example because the dancing is not sexualized, the men and women are pretty much doing the exact same dance moves. As for the attire not many women go around dressing like that so the attire seems a little masculinized. But, I get what the videos are trying to show.
ReplyDeleteMelissa Steinberg.
One of the biggest things with this music video is that there is a same generalization with clothing. Even in the openning scene the "nurse" walking through the hall is in a traditional nurses outfit. Where as many bands such as Blink 182 use the "slutty" nurse outfit on the cover of their Enema of the State album. Many of the outfits that are portrayed in videos often show women nearly naked and men barely showing any skin. With this video it is something different.
ReplyDeleteKelsey Michelini
I agree with what Emily points out in this video, we see most videos showing women in reveling clothes and dancing very Promiscuous. in this the dancing was unique and seemed to have more of a plot then just women dancing. I think she did a great job but showing that you don't have to be Promiscuous in order to make a good video coming from a women point. So that fact that in a way she broke a mold was really cool and added points to her "different" video.
ReplyDeleteKathryn Turner
I think that this is a good example of how music videos do not have to be sexualized because of how they are dressed and the way they are dancing. To me, It seems like they are dancing to original dancing like it used to be before all the sexualized dancing became popular. They all looked like they were enjoying their fun and unique dance. I think Janelle made the choice of having everyone dress the same and dance with themselves to show talent. They is not a part in the video that shows anyone of them dancing on eachother. I thought the video was very traditional and fun to watch.
ReplyDelete-Jennifer Berg
This is a great example of how dancing can be very entertaining without be sexual in nature. Everyone in the video is dressed the same and there is no visible difference between the men and the women in the video. It equalizes both sexes. By having both the men and women dressed the same, the viewer only focuses on the music and dancing, as Janelle Monae intended. The artistry of the awesome dance moves and the unexpected setting makes this video one of a kind. By stripping away all the "stripping" (pun intended), the video becomes unique for focusing entirely on the music and dancing, when that's what music videos should always focus on.
ReplyDelete-Angie Marini
this is a great example of how dancing does not have to be based on gender. it shows that women do not have to be out on stage shaking something in order for it to be considered dancing. instead we see women dressed in modest clothing dancing in an extremly non-sexual way, and the men dancing in the same fasion not bumping and grinding on the women like so many other videos.
ReplyDeleteAngie--I love the pun.
ReplyDeleteI think this video is a great example of how a video can be good without being gendered or sexualized. The attire was definitely not gendered since the men and women were all wearing the same clothes. Also the dance was the same for both the men and women. This type of dancing is very different than the dancing style today. Today it seems like the only way a woman should be dancing is provocatively. I like how this video showed that women can dance uniquely without showing a lot of skin or shaking everything.
ReplyDelete-alexa arent
This video does a great job of showing how dancing can still be considered dancing even though there's no sexual moves taking place. It equalizes the men and women by putting them in the same clothes and performing the same dance moves. Unlike most dance/music videos, this video doesn't have the women wearing something provocative and pretty much 'grinding' on a guy while he just stands there. Without these unnecessary distractions, the viewers can just focus on the music and the dancing, which is what it all should be about in the first place. More videos should be done this way so they wont be considered different in the future.
ReplyDeleteJackie Golevicz
This video is awesome because of the dancing. The men and women wear the same outfit which is the primary reason it is so un-sexualized and makes them all equal. They show very minimal skin which is very different from the usual music videos we see today. I feel like I could really appreciate the music and the dancing because the dancing wasn't provocative and your eyes were fixed on them. More videos should be done this way.
ReplyDeleteCaitlyn Parrish
This music video does a good job example of how dancing does not have to be sexual and does not have to be gendered. All of the men and women in the video are dressed the same and they are doing the same dance moves. In most music videos girls are wearing slutty, provocative outfits and they are doing slutty dancing because they think the viewer will be more appealed to this video. But in this video Janelle did, there were no distractions and we could actually pay more attention to the actual music and dancing.
ReplyDeleteTaylor Murphy
This video empahsizes the talent and abilities of the participants rather than their clothing (or lack there of) or their physical attributes. The featured artist is clearly feminine, she is beautiful, without being scantilly clad or simulating sex acts. The setting of a hospital provided a blank canvas, they are traditionally not a sexualized atmosphere. All of the dancers were dressed similarly, in a fashion that does not emphasize gender...the photography focused on the bodies, but focused on feet and legs rather than other parts of the anatomy. In addition, the lyrics were not perjorative.
ReplyDeleteAmy Caldwell
This video here is very interesting. It shows that people still perform and dance for the beauty and love of the perform and not so much for the money and fame. Their needs to be more artists trying to do more like this then selling their body
ReplyDeleteAndrew Schaad
The video is showing that dancing doesn’t have to be sexualized or gendered by movement or attire because all the men and women are wearing the same thing. Everyone is dancing the same and are wearing the same attire. The video shows that a music video doesn't need sexual dancing and revealing clothing to be good. The talent is all in the singing and the dancing and not in how sexual you can look in a video.
ReplyDeleteAmanda DeBates
Because everyone is dressed the same in the video, Janelle has to gain attention through her talented dance rather than with revealing attire. Both the men and the women are dressed equally and do similar dance moves to show men and women should be treated equally in life.
ReplyDeleteRather than men and women dancing together, there is a fair amount of distance between everyone. With the way of dress and distance between dancers, it shows that modesty can be just as appealing, or more-so, than sexualized music videos. The dress and dancing is classy and of good quality.
-Emily Janas
In this music video, the outfits are very different from the regular "slutty" music video outfits. In the beginning, the nurse is wearing the original attire for an actual one. However, Janelle and the rest of her dancers are wearing tuxedos which are really supposed to be for men. And with this gender switch it just puts the women on an equal level. I believe that Janelle's style of dance really brings out unique talent and art. I think that she represents the story of what girls have in the inside.
ReplyDelete--Megan Salvatori
This is a great video that shows how videos do not have to be sexualized or gendered by movement or attire because like some of the comments above mentioned all of the guys and girls are dressed the same. The guys are not aggressively making moves on the girls, having them in certain positions and the girls are not suggestive in their dance moves and are fully dressed. Some videos today just protray sex. Period. But, everyone in this video are dancing very freely and they look like they are really enjoying themselves. That is something you do not see in videos today.
ReplyDeleteKristine Tume
I like how the video is still entertaining without showing any sexual moves or showing much skin. It goes well with the video especially since its a catchy song. This video also shows that it can be famous without showing any signs of sexual activity. Its appealing for anyone to watch.
ReplyDelete-Jason Renacido
This video is a great example of how dance doesn't have to be sexualized or gender by all of the dancers wearing suits whether they were male or female. The suits do not define their gender. They can dance freely because their clothes do not restrict their movement.Janelle shows her talent by incorporating the Charleston dance with dance styles today. Even though in the 1920's the charleston was danced by men she shows her talent by doing this dance and she is a female. She break the gap between the dance from being gendered. Her lyrics show her talent by conveying a message to love yourself whether you happy or sad. To not let what other say about you bother you. she kept her balance dancing on one foot. Her choice of clothing for the video is a work of art. I appreciated the video and it was well done-Altagrace Jean-Francois
ReplyDeleteIt definitely seems that Janelle Monae broke the mold with this video. I agree totally with everyone else in that she did an awesome job of showing how dancing does not have to be sexualized or gendered by movement or attire. For starters, like everyone else said, one of the biggest reasons for this is the fact that all of the men and women are wearing the same non-provocative outfit. I think Janelle did this as a means to divert viewers attention from the attire to the dance moves. As for the dance moves, I thought the were awesome. They were very unique and attention-grabbing. Most notably, however, was the she was able to achive both of these qualities without being sexual in any way. All in all, I thought that this was a great video and it would be cool to see more out there like it.
ReplyDelete-Chad Altfillisch
Absolutely loved the music, style, and dance interpretations that were in this music video. Its really nice to be presented with a music video that doesn't focus only on attractive young people dancing half naked. I believe the best music videos are the ones that have a style set up like a movie and tell stories. This music video was very entertaining and sets a good example for successful music videos to follow. Kudos to Miss Monae for creating a "fresh" piece of entertainment that is not genderized.
ReplyDeleteJoe Womack
This is a prime example to younger generations that have sex and sexual dance moves basically shoved in their face every day. The clothes are a tad manly however this dance shows that not everything has to be related to sex. This definitely gets the point across that women and men can be equal in their dance moves and not have to be flaunting their sexuality all over the place.
ReplyDelete-Kara Burroughs
Kudos to Miss Monae for creating such a fresh piece of entertainment that presents a video that is very gender fair. Its kinda comforting in a way knowing that some people out there choose to entertain in a different way and doesnt have to follow a certain trend (such as half naked attractive people dancing) to be successful. Fun music video!
ReplyDeleteThis video shows a good sense of creativity that does not have to be genderized. The slightly masculine outfit of Monae shows that women don't have to show off their bodies in order to make an entertaining and artistic video. I completely agree that more videos should be done this way, or at least not in a way that relies solely on the making women look sexual.
ReplyDeleteCarmen Nunez
This music video doesnt sexual women. The men and women in the video were wearing the same attire, which i think is great because it takes the focus off the outfits and the women because women are usually dressed in almost no clothes in most music videos. By taking the focus off the genders because of the attire it allows you to watch the dancing and the message of the song and video. The dancing was not sexual which also makes you focus on the video itself. I think the music video was great and i like that it didnt have the typical music video women in it.
ReplyDelete-Kimberly Matejka
This video is a perfect example that women do not have to dress sexy or dance sexy. There is no sexual dancing in this movie and it is great because usually women are dancing all sexual in most music videos and it is good to see a change. Also women are dressed the same way as men and you rarely see that today. I feel like more videos should follow this video's example of how women are potrayed.
ReplyDelete-Tara Rednour
This video shows that dancing should not be sexualized and gendered, most video have women half-dressed dancing in front of men to get attention and men in full clothes. Also Janelle choice of attire, dance almost every aspect of this video emphasizes how creative and talented she is.
ReplyDeleteSandra Odei
I think that this video does a very good job of making the men and women equal by their clothing. I also think that women are usually portrayed in a provocative manner in music videos today. It seems that in music videos today, men are the ones doing actual 'dance' moves while women are just used as a distraction.
ReplyDelete-Laura Curtin
This video was very intersting. It had no sexual moves in the dance at all. People now a days always have some type of sewual reference in their dance. This was fun and enjoyable to watch with out having to see something sexual. I also thought that the outfits were neutral. I liked how they didn't show off a womens body in a negatibve way. I think that more music videos need to be like this music video.
ReplyDeleteMichele Salvatori
This video does in fact make a valid point in saying that females don't have to be about sex all the time. But the only person that is not symbolizing sex is the artist and her "posse." There is one scene in the video when Big Boi shows up and there is a line of women moving their hips with a very tight one peace on. Even though we don't want women to be sex symbols, there is always something which suggests something else. Other than that, this video states that women and men can just have fun with each other by doing the same dance moves.
ReplyDeleteJulia Henderson
This video kind of confused me. They are making insane places out to be these amazing places with these sexy girls dancing around all over the place. They are also conveying women and nurses as sexual, that might be a little insane or crazy. this video could be taken in many different ways...I took it kind of like offensive I guess.
ReplyDelete-Shawna Sabo
This video in fact portrays women in the media as something positive. But there are some references to sexual behavior in this video because when Big Boi's part came up, there were women standing behind him with very tight black one pieces on moving their hips to the beat. There are not that many videos where both the men and women do the same dance moves without the man looking as the "pimp" like in most videos. I believe that there are lots of videos like this but the media only concentrates on the many bad ones. In recent years, the sexuality of women in men videos has slowed down as apposed to the past.
ReplyDeleteJulia Henderson
First off, I love Janelle Monae's music and she's like the female Andre 3000! I feel likeshe's trying to send a message that sexy does not have to equal slutty, and that sex+women does not have to be the main focus of a music video. Everyone was equally dressed and noone was more out there in her video more than someone else. A women nor man has to be naked to make her video nice and interesting. Janelle's whole video is creative, as well as, very artistic. There isa lot of dancing and there seems to be a story being told. She made a difference by having the men and women wearing and doing the same (similar) things. Finally, a time were everyone is shown equally and positively!
ReplyDelete.-Kendra Owens-.
This video is a great example of how dancing doesn't have to sexualized or gendered by movement or atire because everyone in the video was presented the same. Both men and women danced and dressed alike. I like the fact that she chose this different approach because it shows that women don't have to dress or dance provocative in order to get recognition for thier talent. I think the video was very innocent and unique and i really enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteMeagan Savage
This video is a great example of how dancing doesn't have to sexualized or gendered by movement or atire because everyone in the video was presented the same. Both men and women danced and dressed alike. I like the fact that she chose this different approach because it shows that women don't have to dress or dance provocative in order to get recognition for thier talent. I think the video was very innocent and unique and i really enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteMeagan Savage
This video showed so much character and how gender has played a big role into the video. I think the woman in the video was trying to show us how men are characterized and how some men act in an environment and anywhere. This video also showed how men act and how men woukd be in a business attire such as this. So I agree with Meagen on some of the dance moves and attires. And this was a very nice video to watch and see. You could also learn a lot from this video, too. I enjoyed every ounce of this video.
ReplyDeleteNyles Wortham