Music has a huge influence on today’s culture and concepts of gender. Lana Del Rey is a 27-year-old musical artist with a very distinct singing voice. Lana Del Rey says “I’ve been a writer since I was seven… I can’t do much else. I wrote every word on my album… There is nothing that I didn't write.” Her song “This Is What Makes Us Girls,” was written to describe her feelings right before her parents sent her off to an exclusive boarding school in Connecticut. In the song, there is a very clear description of how women and men have been culturally shaped, how female behavior is influenced by male interaction and persuasion.
Lana begins her song by telling a story of how her 16-year-old self and friends would skip school to drink with the senior boys. She describes her best friend, standing in high heels, starting to cry with “mascara runnin’ down her little bambi eyes… ‘Lana how I hate those guys’”. The word “bambi” perfectly describes their situation. These 16-year-old little girls are naïve, trying to fill the position of an older woman in order to feel loved. The idea that girls are most appealing when they are dressed up and wearing makeup, is a concept that many young girls believe to be true. Today, there are young girls everywhere, caking makeup on their face, stuffing their bras, and wearing revealing clothes to attract attention. Our materialistic culture has engraved the idea into the minds of young children, that beauty is the most important thing, and is the only way to receive desirable attention.
Lana then sings how girls “look for heaven and… put love first (don’t cry about it, don’t cry about it).” She explains that love is “something that we’d die for, it’s our curse… we don’t stick together ‘cause we put love first.” These lyrics hold true to what young girls strive for. Everyone wants to feel wanted, wants to be loved, and wants to feel special. Many young girls go to boys to feel this so-called ‘love’. The sad truth about this reality is that girls are blinded by their emotional desires, and are unable to step back from this turmoil to understand what’s really going on. They believe that they are in a special relationship, but really they are trapped in a cycle of lies and controversial feelings. They are sucked into the cultural expectations of the world and try to change who they are in order to feel accepted. Lana describes how girls will literally do anything to be loved, and will even ditch their friends for it. Not only does this cycle hurt young girls in the process, but it also hurts their friends.
Another lyric that stands out to me is when Lana sings about how she is “running from the cops in our black bikini tops yellin’ ‘get us while we’re hot, get us while we’re hot’ (come on take a shot)”. This image shows how women are obsessed with impressing boys. Women act this way because they want to be what a man wants... and what a man wants is a perfect and sexy girl. Lana implies that rebellion and scandalous dressing will attract a mans attention. Men’s sexual desires have been broadcast-ed in today’s culture, providing the idea that it’s the most important thing to them.
Many teenage girls are able to easily relate to Lana’s song. I can put my friends and myself in this same story, and am able to reflect on how I may have been mistreated in the past. It is easy to get caught up in feelings that you think are real, when in reality; they are just a bunch of lies. Time and time again, I can recall moments where my friends would leave me for boys who, eventually, left them for something ‘better’. Lana does a good job of describing the stereotypical boy, who only wants ‘one thing’. In the song, Lana repeatedly sings “don’t cry about him, don’t cry about him”, proving how frequently boys directly affect girls’ emotions.
It is easy for a girl to get wrapped up in a relationship, and to unconsciously form into the ‘perfect girl’ for the boy. Girls easily get caught up in pleasing the boy and forget what is truly important to them and what makes them happy. Due to this conformation, girls rely on the boy for happiness, which ultimately gives the boy complete control in the relationship. Once the boy gains this control, it is easy for him to unconsciously use this against the girl. The phrase frequently used today is that the boy has the girl ‘wrapped around his finger, and can swing her any which way’. Relationships like these are more common than they should be. It becomes a toxic relationship of constant distress and angst. The girl always wants to feel happy, but is unable to realize that her only resort to happiness is the boy. Because she is so used to this relationship, she is trapped and doesn't know how to get happiness anywhere else.
Lana Del Rey has successfully introduced the distinct differences between female and male power. She has made clear the gender roles that each person plays in a relationship, and how it affects women. Her song helps our culture to understand how women strive to be a certain way in order to impress men.
Lana begins her song by telling a story of how her 16-year-old self and friends would skip school to drink with the senior boys. She describes her best friend, standing in high heels, starting to cry with “mascara runnin’ down her little bambi eyes… ‘Lana how I hate those guys’”. The word “bambi” perfectly describes their situation. These 16-year-old little girls are naïve, trying to fill the position of an older woman in order to feel loved. The idea that girls are most appealing when they are dressed up and wearing makeup, is a concept that many young girls believe to be true. Today, there are young girls everywhere, caking makeup on their face, stuffing their bras, and wearing revealing clothes to attract attention. Our materialistic culture has engraved the idea into the minds of young children, that beauty is the most important thing, and is the only way to receive desirable attention.
Lana then sings how girls “look for heaven and… put love first (don’t cry about it, don’t cry about it).” She explains that love is “something that we’d die for, it’s our curse… we don’t stick together ‘cause we put love first.” These lyrics hold true to what young girls strive for. Everyone wants to feel wanted, wants to be loved, and wants to feel special. Many young girls go to boys to feel this so-called ‘love’. The sad truth about this reality is that girls are blinded by their emotional desires, and are unable to step back from this turmoil to understand what’s really going on. They believe that they are in a special relationship, but really they are trapped in a cycle of lies and controversial feelings. They are sucked into the cultural expectations of the world and try to change who they are in order to feel accepted. Lana describes how girls will literally do anything to be loved, and will even ditch their friends for it. Not only does this cycle hurt young girls in the process, but it also hurts their friends.
Another lyric that stands out to me is when Lana sings about how she is “running from the cops in our black bikini tops yellin’ ‘get us while we’re hot, get us while we’re hot’ (come on take a shot)”. This image shows how women are obsessed with impressing boys. Women act this way because they want to be what a man wants... and what a man wants is a perfect and sexy girl. Lana implies that rebellion and scandalous dressing will attract a mans attention. Men’s sexual desires have been broadcast-ed in today’s culture, providing the idea that it’s the most important thing to them.
Many teenage girls are able to easily relate to Lana’s song. I can put my friends and myself in this same story, and am able to reflect on how I may have been mistreated in the past. It is easy to get caught up in feelings that you think are real, when in reality; they are just a bunch of lies. Time and time again, I can recall moments where my friends would leave me for boys who, eventually, left them for something ‘better’. Lana does a good job of describing the stereotypical boy, who only wants ‘one thing’. In the song, Lana repeatedly sings “don’t cry about him, don’t cry about him”, proving how frequently boys directly affect girls’ emotions.
It is easy for a girl to get wrapped up in a relationship, and to unconsciously form into the ‘perfect girl’ for the boy. Girls easily get caught up in pleasing the boy and forget what is truly important to them and what makes them happy. Due to this conformation, girls rely on the boy for happiness, which ultimately gives the boy complete control in the relationship. Once the boy gains this control, it is easy for him to unconsciously use this against the girl. The phrase frequently used today is that the boy has the girl ‘wrapped around his finger, and can swing her any which way’. Relationships like these are more common than they should be. It becomes a toxic relationship of constant distress and angst. The girl always wants to feel happy, but is unable to realize that her only resort to happiness is the boy. Because she is so used to this relationship, she is trapped and doesn't know how to get happiness anywhere else.
Lana Del Rey has successfully introduced the distinct differences between female and male power. She has made clear the gender roles that each person plays in a relationship, and how it affects women. Her song helps our culture to understand how women strive to be a certain way in order to impress men.
I found it very interesting that you stereotyped relationships through this song as mostly being male-dominated and that the girls become too involved too quickly. From what I gathered in this song, she is being critical of this stereotype and the fact that it even exists in our culture, but she doesn't really say much to encourage girls to break from it. I also feel that her use of "curse" makes it sound like it afflicts all girls and it's something they can't break from, which is not very encouraging in itself. If that wasn't the point of the song to argue gender roles in a relationship, then did she only want to point out that she was too involved in relationships herself at that age? I am just trying to find any true meaning behind the song other than retelling her own experience.
ReplyDeleteI found it very interesting that you stereotyped relationships through this song as mostly being male-dominated and that the girls become too involved too quickly. From what I gathered in this song, she is being critical of this stereotype and the fact that it even exists in our culture, but she doesn't really say much to encourage girls to break from it. I also feel that her use of "curse" makes it sound like it afflicts all girls and it's something they can't break from, which is not very encouraging in itself. If that wasn't the point of the song to argue gender roles in a relationship, then did she only want to point out that she was too involved in relationships herself at that age? I am just trying to find any true meaning behind the song other than retelling her own experience.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love this song and Lana del ray! I totally agree with you that this song really does speak to a teenage girls soul. Along with Zach's comment, Do you think through Lana's lyrics and rising popularity girls will begin to take a stand in relationships? Do you think that since the lyrics are from personal experiences listeners will be able to relate more to her experiences? What makes this song different than other songs about relationships?
ReplyDeleteI'd like to start by saying that your song choice was wonderful. I had never heard the song before you played it during our class, and I fell in love with the lyrics. I think it's very interesting how Lana uses the story of her adolescence to display her ideas about cultural perceptions of beauty. Do you think the reason that some girls perpetuate these perceptions has to do with fear of being judged or personal insecurities?
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