A couple of events in the news led me to write this blog and I am going to try and tie them together in a roundabout sort of way. First off is Hugh Hefner being a guest in London this week to open his new Playboy club… The last closing its doors in the UK in the early 80’s alongside the likes of The Black and White Minstrel Show etc. being taken off air... as times were changing and things were no longer seen as apropiate and were considered offensive.
In this link you can check out how a bunny should behave and what perks you get from being a bunny in 1968! kinda interesting!
So in 2011 have our attitudes changed?
Have we regressed? Have we progressed with our understanding of what could be considered exploitation? Or have we females of our species become desensitised as sexuality and provocative behaviour and fashion is pushed in every type of media from what seems like an earlier age.
The answer to the first and last question is most certainly YES… but the answer to the other two is not quite so evenly decided and I’m not going to tell you either, you can come to your own decision, as of course, this is a one female person blog, I can only comment from my point of view, not as a spokesperson for womankind... so what do I think is going on?
Well… first off, I am by far not a prude and do get offended by any naked body be it male, female, large or small, young or old, we are all human and we are all naked at some point, though we are all different we should all have the same bits that make us a male or female human being and there is nothing about this to be ashamed or embarrased about.
The female nude has been celebrated in art over centuries… we are naturally curvy, soft and easy on the eye we suggest sensuality and I see no harm in enjoying the beauty of this, but there is a fine line where it can/could cross into vulgarity where most undoubtedly some of Playboys successors have stepped over into that boundary, but that is not what I’m getting at.
Personally I feel it is some very clever marketing from the direction of the Hefner corner…
The playboy bunny icon has become a symbol of ‘class’ to some.
To the men who buy into it, you get a better class of scantily clad young lady and in some way I think women have bought into this as well. Yet what we see as the Playboy franchise holds the aces in all types of fashion, from lingerie to sportswear, perfume, make up and jewellery and come in the form of a cute silhouetted bunny with a bow tie. How kitsch and adorable right?
But not when it’s marketed at 5yo girls!! Ick…
But is this coming from the parents? I’m sure as hell if I was a parent of a little girl there would be NO WAY I would let her wear anything with that rabbit on it… but if mum does??
What example are we setting for the future when there is an understanding behind these things?
Also, Hefner and his crew have seemingly got us on board of his enterprise since the early 80s by marketing things which typically attract the female eye. So what was once seen as something as a male dominated past time it has become more… shall we say a family event in some circumstances?
I personally look upon the whole Playboy enterprise as bit of a very clever joke, Hef sure knows what side his breads buttered on and I think every one of those girls at his mansion do too…
Personally you would never catch me wearing that rabbit… but then again, I have realised a long time ago that I rarely like what a real girly girl likes… I’m too pragmatic is my problem.
I don’t find anything offensive about it… They do produce a magazine which in all fairness does sometimes have some interesting articles and it is only fair to say you can also buy Playgirl and it suffers from the same problems as Playboy…
All the woman/men come from the same line off the conveyer belt, have the same poisons injected and implanted to give the same overall appearance, sprayed the same shade of orange with a choice of hair colours which are is only seen on the head, as eyebrows have become tattooed and pubic hair a no no in this modern society, resembling the somewhat well-known and well-loved Barbie doll!
Maybe this is the connection young woman have today? We resemble one of our most well-loved toys, pull a guy with plenty of £££££ (Ken) and live the life of riley… Who can blame the girls who can do this? If they are happy and they feel good about it? What’s the harm?
The harm comes from when the media lose all sense of reality… This advertisement by body shop was banned as it was offensive and Barbie Inc. put the stop on it…
So what I’m saying is, we don’t find being told how to behave in a manner a man would like to see and how to answer to his needs offensive, but a plastic doll which depicts a somewhat Junoesque realistic female body becomes an eyesore… with the slogan ‘Love Your Mind, Love Your Body’ HOW? WHEN? BY WHOM?
In a world where eating disorders are on the increase and you can buy bras for three year olds and advert basically saying ‘Love Who You Are’… is wrong I find slightly sinister.
But as with everything in this modern world…
‘Money Makes The World Go Round’… regardless of dignity and proposed progression.
No comments:
Post a Comment