ipl-logo

Stereotypes In Anaconda

1120 Words5 Pages

Women in the media have always been systemically categorized according to their race. Whether it’s asian women only being given specific roles in hollywood, or black women only being able to succeed in a specific genre of music, this has always been the case. This effectively forces depictions of racially diverse women - specifically black women - into highly exoticized categories, where their features are fetishized and eroticized. Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda” begins with an overview shot of a jungle, panning on a tree. Immediately a monkey runs by on a branch, and then the camera pans down to Nicki and three other women. This beginning makes it seem like the music video will be a depiction of stereotypes of black women, but that is not the case. …show more content…

Black women rappers are “[placed in] a very narrow strict divide between those women who are viewed as having a very sexualized image or not.” (Lane, 789) Unlike most rap music videos, where women's bodies are on display for men to look at, Minaj creates a space that is dominated by women and she is in control of her sexuality. When she is portrayed as what can be called an “object” she is on display for other women, not men. The most prominent moments in the music video in …show more content…

In the music industry, but mostly in the rap and hip-hop field, black women are seen as objects of sex. If women are too masculine within the rap field, they are not seen as being “profitable” yet if they are too feminine they are deemed too sexual. Within the rap genre black men "policed [whereas] black women rapper's central contestation is in the arena of sexual politics.” (Rose, 147) Along with this, due to western society's obsession with the “different,” black women are erotisized and sexualized within their own field of work. Certain parts of Nicki Minaj’s “Anaconda” music video is set in the jungle. This small factor on its own plays in to the exotisization of black women, playing in to the notion that black women are “otherworldly.” Although this is the case, it is clear that Minaj is in complete control of what is going on in the video. She makes eye contact with the viewer, as if taunting them to say something against what is taking place. Along with this, the music video is almost one hundred percent dominated by black women. These women are using the stereotypes once used against them, to benefit them now. Usually, “black women’s bodies in rap music, offer a body with no agency. [Their] rear ends are either the theme of the song or the star of the music video, but rarely do these women get to express anything outside of a sexuality that is already shaped by the desire of the male artist.” (Lane, 789) This though, is not the case in “Anaconda.” Nicki

Show More
Related

Stereotypes In The Film Girl's Trip

1443 Words | 6 Pages

The film Girl’s Trip has been applauded for being a celebration of blackness in the primarily white film industry. The majority of the cast and the writers for Girl’s Trip are people of color. The film was much more successful than its “white counterpart” Rough Night in box office revenue and reviews. However, most of the black characters in Girl’s Trip shift through various controlling images throughout the movie. The reason these stereotypes are less obvious than they are in some other films is because each characters portrays multiple stereotypes and different times throughout the film.

Read More

A Rhetorical Analysis Of Azealia Banks

625 Words | 3 Pages

In 2014 Banks calls out calling out rapper Iggy Azalea for symbolizing white exploitation of black culture saying that she uses hip-hop as a costume that she is able to take on an off when she wants to, noting Azalea’s accent and lack of commentary on police brutality. Banks notes that Azealia’s recognition is part of a broader phenomenon in the United States of white appropriation of black musical production (74). Outside of the realm of cultural appropriation Banks’ has worked to re-appropriate derogatory terms usually directed at women, specifically the word “cunt”. Banks not only uses the term to validate the black female body, but to challenge heteronormative norms in hip-hop, and establish herself in a position of power. In addition to allowing her to appropriate a sexual gesture that rappers often used to express power over a romantic interest, Banks’s prominent and provocative use of the word “cunt” reclaims a word men commonly used to belittle women and rearticulates it as a figure of strength and

Read More

Summary Of Sister Citizen By Melissa Perry

583 Words | 3 Pages

Perry uses the metaphor of a crooked room to describe what these stereotypes do to black women. All these limit black women from finding themselves, and misrecognizes them not only to society but to themselves so much that black women feel shameful for not meeting their stunted expectations. This feeling of shame causes black women to more likely be “poor, to be unmarried, to parent children alone, to be overweight, to be physically ill, and to be undereducated and unemployed” (pg. 70). To combat the feeling of shame, Perry argues that black women will try to find their upright position and break away from those stereotypes, or distort themselves to fit better in their “crooked

Read More

Aibileen's Stereotypes

981 Words | 4 Pages

Thus, because of commonly known stereotypes, great actresses that are capable of a whole spectrum of roles are clearly put in frames and often rejected. I believe, long-established degrading stereotypes play the major role in this pause of the development of black women in media, as a result of their continuous degrading

Read More

Summary Of The Film 'Beyond Beats And Rhymes'

392 Words | 2 Pages

“Beyond Beats and Rhymes” Summary This movie was a broad discussion about hip-hop music (or more specifically gangster rap) and what kind of social issues the music not only showcases but seems to promote. The producer of this film, Byron Hunt, interviewed people involved in all aspects of the hip-hop industry, including famous rappers, to try to get to the bottom of this. Some of the most prominent issues discussed in the film were the over-sexualization of women, gun violence, and anti- homophobic attitudes. Hunt would ask those involved in the industry about why they think these themes are so prevalent.

Read More

Mickalene Thomas

510 Words | 3 Pages

I saw many different representations of black women throughout the exhibit and I I did not stray from the art at all. The things I see in this art are young vibrant

Read More

Annotated Bibliography On Stereotypes

792 Words | 4 Pages

" Journal of Black Studies 39.1 (2007): 5-21. Web. 2 Mar. 2015. The studies of this article examine the images of men and women that advertisements perpetuate. Mass media is a widely accessible resource that presents positive and negative portrayals.

Read More

Analysis Of Hip-Hop's Betrayal Of Black Women

633 Words | 3 Pages

In her essay “hip hop’s betrayal of black women,” Jennifer McLune implies that “(h)ip-hop owes its success to the ideology of women-hating” (193). She does not agree with Kevin Powell’s article that hip-hop does not mean to “offend” black women, but instead artists are only letting out their temper throughout their music. McLune feels infuriated that many artists in hip hop (including black men) rap about their community and downgrade their own women. In the hip-hop genre, sexism is mainly used, not only by black men but also by many other race hip-hop artists. Artists assume that women-hating in their rap songs will be accepted by women, but do not realize that it is affecting all women.

Read More

Nelly Tip Drill Analysis

298 Words | 2 Pages

An illustration of misogyny would be Nelly’s music video ‘Tip Drill;’ whereby he participates in the objectification of women. Specifically, filming half naked women, using a worm eye angle shot to explicitly show the women’s rear end. In the music video Nelly is partaking in hyper masculine behaviour by grabbing females’ body parts, tossing money on them and swiping his credit card through their buttock. This exemplifies misogynistic characteristic identified by scholars; women are dehumanized and portrait as eye candy, worthless and sexual beings for men pleasure. Subsequently, these minimal representations of black women can be damaging to one’s conscious; it is also a form of othering African American females, not acknowledging their individualism

Read More

Analysis Of Beyonce's Lemonade

1027 Words | 5 Pages

Although critics claim that Beyonce’s album portrays the black woman as the ‘victim,’ Lemonade instead empowers black women to freely express themselves and their ‘anger’ because there is no greater oppression than suffering in silence. Truly, Bell Hooks’ claim that “much of the album stays within a conventional stereotypical framework, where the black woman is always a victim,” is false and insensitive. As an artist, Beyonce crafts music that resonates with women, especially black women, who have suffered pain due to patriarchal ideals that infiltrate the household as well. The

Read More

Beyonce's Influence On Women And Body Image

928 Words | 4 Pages

Some have accused her of perpetuating harmful beauty ideals by presenting an idealized version of black femininity that is unattainable for most women. Others have argued that her focus on physical appearance detracts from more important issues facing the black community, such as systemic racism and economic inequality. In addition, one of the most prominent feminists in the world who is Bell Hooks has also criticized Beyonce and accused her of terrorism for her appearance on the ''TIME'' magazine cover. One of Hooks' main critiques of Beyoncé is her emphasis on physical beauty and sexualized performances. Hooks argues that Beyoncé's music and videos often objectify women's bodies and reinforce traditional gender roles.

Read More

Social Stratification In The Movie The Help

610 Words | 3 Pages

Black women are treated less than because of their ascribed traits, their gender and race, and are often dehumanized and belittled throughout the movie. They are treated like slaves and are seen as easily disposable. There are several moments throughout the film that show the racial, gender, and class inequalities. These moments also show exploitation and opportunity hoarding. The Help also explains historical context of the inequality that occurred during that time period.

Read More

Argumentative Essay: Does Rap Music Promote Violence?

718 Words | 3 Pages

Most people believe that “lyrics should appeal to us, not degrade us” (Glidden3). There is controversy surrounding “some artists accused of rapping sexually inflammatory lyrics” (Encyclopedia4). The actions of a few is causing people to put a bad label on rap in a whole. This bias opinion is becoming the cause of listeners to believe that rap lyrics “are setting a bad example for kids and teens” (Glidden2). I can understand where this may lead to critics to misapply such distaste to the rap form, but “there are rap artists who don’t use offensive language or portray women in a negative light” (Glidden1).

Read More

Hip Hop And Feminism Essay

759 Words | 4 Pages

¨If Hip Hop has the ability to corrupt minds, it also has the ability to uplift them.¨ Hip hop music, also called rap music, is a music genre developed in the United States by African Americans consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted. Mainstream hip hop culture is also filled with misogyny and negative images of women. These artists are unaware that sexism has been forced onto them through the brainwashing from the media, which is controlled by a patriarchal society. Conversely, feminism is the belief that both genders should have equal power.

Read More

Theme Of Violence In Music Videos

347 Words | 2 Pages

Along with the creation of music videos, hip-hop’s popularity has soared and changed in many ways. Men and women are depicted in distinct and vivid ways in the media – particularly music videos – that may subconsciously affect our views of the norms of today’s society. That is, catchy songs and glamorous music videos that society thinks are harmless entertainment actually shape our worldview and can cause people to accept false impressions of women (Shrum & Lee, 2012). For example, as Sarnavka (2003) posits, women are victims of violence in society, as well as victims of violence in media (as cited in Bretthauer, Zimmerman, and Banning, 2007).

Read More

More about Stereotypes In Anaconda

Related Topics

Open Document