For this EXTRA CREDIT post, it's your turn to show us an example of a form of resistance or rebellion that you know. You may post a video clip, a photo, an image of a piece of art (painting, sculpture, graffiti art, mural, etc.), music video/song lyrics---whatever example or form of resistance that you find interesting. In your post describe your chosen example and discuss the following: What is the example protesting or rebelling against? How does it show a form of resistance? Why is this example compelling to you?
Your post must be 2-3 full paragraphs and must you include the web address for the media (image, video clip, blog post, etc) you are analyzing so that I may view it as well. Failure to include the web address will invalidate your post and you will not receive the extra credit points. In addition, you may not use films/video clips/images/blog entries we discussed as a group or something that I specifically assigned for the class to read/view, this includes blog entries I’ve listed on this site. Pick something new! Please post your comments by 5:00 pm on Friday, June 6th. Note that you may not use this post as one of your regular blog postings (you should have posted five time prior to this one).
“The Prelude: Herstory Retold” is a spoken word/monologue performed by Jessica Valdez, 5th year UCLA student in “footage: A Senior Project Showcase” that took place on May 17, 2014 in Kaufman Hall. Valdez voices her opinion on how our society is shaped by historical myths such as Adam and Eve and La Malinche, which portray women as evil and treacherous, resulting in a male dominated society. She states that it is unknown whether these accounts are true events, or if they were created in order to maintain the status quo. Either way, these stories are engrained in our culture and we are raised to accept them. Valdez believes that these stories are degrading towards women and strip them of their true beauty and value. As a result, our history is fragmented because of the one sided nature of these accounts.
ReplyDeleteValdez demonstrates resistance in the form of performing arts. She recites her monologue in a sing-song manner and uses rhyming and repetition in order to emphasize her point of view. She uses four other individuals to state parts of her monologue as well and provide reassurance by stomping on the sides of the stage and snapping in the front as a sign of agreement. Valdez recites her monologue in English and in Spanish to reiterate the fact that these issues are present throughout multiple cultures and societies. She performed this monologue in front of about three hundred people and expressed resistance against the status quo that is shaped by a predominantly patriarchal history. Today in our society, visual and performing arts are usually peaceful methods of resistance because freedom is welcomed and even encouraged in the arts. This particular piece was compelling to me because I got to witness it live and also because the performing arts are my main form of self-expression.
The monologue by Jessica Valdez begins at 10:00:
http://vimeo.com/96098827
Source: http://www.theonion.com/
ReplyDeleteThe website "The Onion" is a trending site with satire entries written in the form of conventional news articles that provides both entertainment and social commentaries on various current events. I find this example particularly compelling because it utilizes the conventions in media to challenge the dominant discourse, using humor to shed light on issues that may be largely avoided in other agencies.
For instance, the article Modernized Space Camp Allows Kids to Simulate Frustration Over Lack of Funding is a page that is formatted just like regular news pages from the overall set-up, the combination of feature photo and bolded titles, to the formalized serious tone and serif font. However, it rebels against set conventions through providing made-up, absurd content that nonetheless pertain to real life. In this case specifically, just like the title suggests, the text rebels against the issue of insufficient funds with a new, humorous take, drawing attention to a normally overlooked issue. Similarly, another piece titled 'No Way to Prevent This,' Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens is a striking parody posted in reaction to the tragic UCSB shooting. While the piece was relatively short and simple, it uses a blatant, straight-to-the-point style to highlight the fact that such shootings reflect deep-rooted and problematic ideologies of misogyny, racial discrimination and violence that have been largely avoided in mainstream media, thereby criticizing individuals and news sources that attempt to ignore such issues, challenging them to acknowledge the gravity of these existing problems. In short, The Onion exemplifies a new form of resistance that is viral, highly responsive and made possible by technological developments - by using humor, satire and parody on an online media to combine popular entertainment and social commentary, The Onion effectively reflects and rebels against various contemporary events.
Jenny Chim
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YR5ApYxkU-U
ReplyDeleteLyrics: http://www.pink-floyd-lyrics.com/html/another-brick-in-the-wall-lyrics.html
Pink Floyd’s unbelievably famous and controversial three part song and music video, “Another Brick in the Wall” is resisting not only school but government, and whoever distributes control and authority. The music video starts out with a boy staring at a train passing by with all his fellow classmates with cut out masks which symbolizes that the authority has control over them, and they will be brainwashed and become boring, subservient, mindless people, who do not stand up for what they believe is right. So the little boy in the video will not let that happen to him. In the scene where the teacher picks on him for writing poetry in class and reads it aloud to the other students (which is actually some of the lyrics to Floyd’s song “Money”) shows that the boy is resisting the teachers and authorities to learn and practice what they teach, the little boy is resisting by thinking for himself creatively in the form of poetry.
The lyrics, “All in all it’s just another brick in the wall” means that the children and more importantly anyone who wants to resist being another mechanical idiot, is placing a wall between the people in control. The most graphic and powerful scene in the video has to be the part when the children have the masks on and on the conveyer belt being dumped into this machine that squishes them and squeezes out a substance like play doh which symbolizes the teachers and authorities turning the youths brain into mush! Hence the lyrics “Hey Teachers, leave them kids alone.” Then the children rebel against the teachers and trash the class room, and burn the school desks. Even though we find out in the end that the boy is only dreaming this, still it shows the potential of resistance. Aside from this being one of my most favorite bands of all time, this song and video I believe to be the perfect demonstration of resistance.
One form of protest that is hard to overlook is street art, which can have a powerful impact. One example comes from Clarion Alley in San Francisco. The Clarion Alley Mural Project (see http://www.meganwilson.com/related/clarion.php) has created an environment where everyone from fine-artists to can-artists can create a masterpiece to express goals of “social inclusiveness and aesthetic variety.” Scroll through the pictures and you will see murals that depict everything from gay rights to environmental responsibility.
ReplyDeleteThere has been a lot of upheaval in San Francisco lately, as the middle and lower classes are pushed out by the rich housing developers and real estate buyers. This process of gentrification has pushed many into poverty and of course stirred a lot of anger. The above website even acknowledges that Clarion Alley has actually ended up contributing to this problem as it has become a popular tourist site and many of the surrounding homes have been turned over to the rich developers. Still, you will find a bold mural right in the center that addresses this problem (see http://www.streetartsf.com/tax-the-rich/ ). Bringing attention to such issues is important to get people’s attention and to get them to ask questions. However, much like the Facebook activism we discussed earlier in class, the activism cannot stop there. People need to act beyond the alley in order to see results. But as a first step, the murals are very important.
As a mainstream song, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ song “Same Love,” is an example of a form of resistance against the norms of our heterosexual society. The song lyrics form a rebellion against the norms of heterosexuality and support a new generation where people can openly express their homosexual identity. “Same Love” shows a particularly unique rebellion against the typical heterosexual love song that is mass-produced in our society today. The song touches on several sensitive subjects, one in particular being the portrayal of homosexuals in religion. There are many ill-informed people who choose to voice their opinions regarding homosexuality in the Bible and are often massively mistaken. The lyrics of “Same Love” eloquently address that God does in fact love all people equally; something that many people would choose to inaccurately argue.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, this example of resistance is very effective because it reaches a broad audience across the globe. Because this was one of the most openly homosexual mainstream songs to be recorded, the song had an immense effect on the general public, evoking a variety of emotions. Most importantly, the recording of “Same Love” brought about the awareness of homosexuality in mainstream music through a well-known and well-liked artist. As if the lyrics alone of “Same Love” aren’t powerful enough, the music video evokes even more emotion through a powerful visual representation. There is something very cool about a song about homosexuality and the right to be represented equally being number one on the charts for several weeks in a row. Such resistance being proof that we are extremely fortunate to live in such an awesome and free country.
This example of resistance is compelling to me because I have many friends that consider themselves to be homosexual. In the fast-paced, ever-changing world we live in today, I think it’s important to take a step back and realize how our country has changed so drastically over the last few decades. Although there is much to be improved still, we have reached a time of freedom that preceding generations would have never dreamed of. This resistance through mainstream music is one of the most effective forms of resistance in my opinion because it reaches such a broad audience that would otherwise be unattainable. Nevertheless, it’s awesome that one of the most popular artists in our generation was able to produce a song so different from the generic music we listen to, yet so real.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQngzapK5dM
The song “Follow Your Arrow” by country singer Kacey Musgraves is the epitome of resistance because of its lyrics. Musgraves is rebelling against the norm of most country songs where lyrics mainly focus on heterosexuality and conservative ideals. There is a refreshing liberal feel to this song since it goes against all of the general topics of country music. Kacey Musgraves uses conflicting statements in her verses as for example below: “If you save yourself for marriage / You're a bore / If you don't save yourself for marriage / You're a horrible person.” The lines talk about how virginity in our day and age is put on a double standard for women, where women are “horrible” if they did not save themselves for marriage, but are “bore(s)” if they did not lose their virginity. The juxtaposition of these lines show how people constantly judge each one another for going against or with the societal norms. She further glorifies the idea of not following the straight and narrow in the chorus. She sings about kissing boys or girls, hinting at the idea of bisexuality / homosexuality. The other songs in her Same Trailer Different Park music album also have the same feel, destroying the ideal fairytale stories to portray a sense of what life truly is.
ReplyDeleteSongs are a great way to rally people to partake in resistance against social norms, as seen through the earlier blog posts of this year. The ideas embedded in her songs impact the million of listeners. Today music is a great medium for eliciting change in society because of its accessibility and coverage. People all over the world who have access to the internet can find these songs and music videos to listen to. They can even share the songs to friends, where it will spread to everywhere it can. The messages of Kacey Musgraves’ songs especially inspire people to live outside the box and to try new things. “Follow Your Arrow” tells listeners to not worry about what other people think, to do what you want to do. In result, people can do what they are comfortable with and may be finally able to attain selfhood, something most of the stories we read in class focused on. This song may not be able to create a large protest, but it can make individuals protest against the ideals in their regular everyday lives. I chose this example specifically because I have recently gotten into listening to the country genre. I enjoy the sound of the southern twang and instrumentals, but sometimes the songs focus too much on backwards ideals. The first time I heard Kacey Musgraves, I fell in love with the entire album because the lyrics were very untraditional and modern, but still had the smooth sounds of typical country songs. This particular song also a very catchy tune and chorus, where listeners could even subconsciously remember the lyrics and possibly take the step away from the straight and narrow when making certain life choices. I know I have used this song to support some of my life choices, and I am sure others have as well.
Emily Dinh
As witnessed in previous blog posts, resistance is shown through many modes and forms. The song “Ndodemnyama we Verwoerd (Beware Verwoerd, here are the black people!)” by Miriam Makeba and Vuyisile Mini became a national anthem to protest the South African apartheid in 1958. Within this song, the lyrics repeat, “Nantsi’ndodemnyama, Verwoerd; Pasopa nantsi’ndodemnyama, Verwoerd,” mean “Here is the black man, Verwoerd; Watch out her comes the black man, Verwoerd.” Although simplistic in its style, the song brings an important issue to light by reminding the listeners of the presence of apartheid and its negative consequences on society. The song contains a light hearted and almost whimsical tune, but the lyrics contrast with this style by confronting the government, particularly the Prime Minister of South Africa.
ReplyDeleteRepresenting a form of resistance through music, Makeba and Mini’s song rebels against the racial segregation present in South Africa at that time. Through resisting the authorities of South Africa, Makeba and Mini became leading forces and voices for their people and their nation. However, Makeba’s disobedience to the government led to her exile from South Africa, and Mini was murdered. Essentially, through this seemingly playful song, Makeba and Mini sacrificed their lives to encourage and promote the importance of voicing one’s opinion for change. This example of resistance is compelling in that it shows the power of two individuals in promoting change for their country. Music is not only a form of art but also a form of rebellion against injustice and discrimination. This song, along with many other forms of resistance in South Africa, brought unity to a nation that lived in division.
Web address: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYwgmOxhUvk
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KT3sXXiYGus&feature=kp
ReplyDeleteAs we discussed before in the blog, music is a worldwide medium of connecting people into one ideology under the object of resistance. Not only music brings people into one idea, but also it effectively instigate people’s sentiment through lyrics, and components of music. The songs are very effective source to share the idea of resistance as their lyrics conveys various aspects of resistance with poem-like abstract words. Those abstract words have enormous power to demonstrate one's thought with sentiment, making the listeners to feel deep empathy on the musician's ideals and beliefs. So, to share some famous resistance songs, I searched for resistance songs and I found that Muse’s “Resistance” is a good example of showing resistance against injustice as it was motivated by the resistance book “1984” by George Orwell. Since Muse is very famous worldwidely, it’s song “Resistance” might brought unification among the people with the same idea.
The song "Resistance" has a great beat and somehow bright tone and rhythm. I think that Muse tried to show the positive sides of resistance, such as hope for the better future, unification among people with same objective, etc. Moreover, the most compelling part of this song is the lyrics. Each line of the lyrics contains certain message that people have to unite and resist against injustice and unrighteousness. The most impressive part to me was “Love is our resistance. They’ll keep us apart and they won’t stop breaking us down. Hold me. Our lips must always be sealed.” From this line, Muse directly shows the message of resistance, and that people have to love each other to resist those injustice in the world.
Muse’s song “Resistance” is worth to focus on its background as the song contains several references from the novel “1894” by George Orwell. This books is about the rebellion against tyranny called Big Brother. Big Brother persecuted all individualism and independent thinking by charging as “thoughtcrime.” To be free individuals and regain the basic rights as human beings, the protagonist, Smith, begins to bream about the rebellion against Big Brother. By combining the literary work with powerful driving force of unification of people, Muse’s “Resistance” represents the public culture of resistance against iniquity and falsehood.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0CazRHB0so
ReplyDeleteLily's Allen's song and music video "Hard Out Here" rebels against the limited and stereotypical portrayal of women in mainstream music and society in general. Her sarcastic and blunt lyrics attack the culturally mainstream view of what makes women beautiful, saying, "You should probably lose some weight 'cause we can't see your bones/ You should probably fix your face or you'll end up on your own." These lyrics highlight the ridiculous pressures that society places on women to look a certain way in order to not "end up on your own." Lily also points out the hypocritical view held by society on men and women's sex lives, writing, "If I told you 'bout my sex life, you'd call me a slut/ When boys be talking about their bitches, no one's making a fuss," questioning why it is acceptable for men to brag about their sex lives and yet shameful for women to do so. The entire song continues in this vein by attacking other stereotypes, such as women being good at cooking.
The music video for the song enhances its rebellion against women's objectification. The video begins with Lily lying on a table getting liposuction while men stand around her talking about how disgraceful it was that she "let herself go" after having two kids. The rest of the video shows an extreme parody of all of the songs and music videos she is resisting, complete with half naked women, twerking, champagne and cigarettes. She even makes a direct stab at Robin Thicke's very objectifying music video "Blurred Lines" by using the same balloons he used to spell out "Robin Thicke has a big dick" in his video to write "Lily Allen has a baggy pussy" in hers. By using all of these objectifying norms to the extreme, she is rebelling against their acceptance in mainstream culture. With over 28,000,000 views for her music video on youtube and over 20,000,000 listens to her song on Spotify alone, her rebellious message has been able to reach an extremely wide audience and has hopefully enabled some of her listeners to see the absurd stereotypes that women still face today.
The discussion of resistance and rebellion in comedy reminded me of political satire such as the Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Normally, they both resist the ridiculousness found in American media or rebel against injustices that occur within government.
ReplyDeleteA particular clip that stood out is when Colbert reports on the Amazon-Hachette conflict. Since he is one of the authors published under the Hachette publishing group, he is personally invested in this conflict. He first discusses the artificial delays that Amazon places on Hachette published books. Colbert proceeds to give Amazon a package, and instead flips off the camera. But he doesn't stop there. He says: "Customers who bought this, also bought this" and flips off the camera with his other hand as well. This gesture is a very strong symbol of rebellion, and by using Amazon's own words, he is quite directly resisting their power and influence over book sales.
More importantly, as the clip continues, Colbert discusses the impact that Amazon's power has over new authors. Apparently, by disallowing pre-orders, many authors lose lots of money and potential to sell their books. The way that Colbert suggests to the viewers to take a stand against the giant that is Amazon is to buy a book by a first-time author off of Colbert's website, or print stickers that state "I didn't buy it on Amazon". I think that it's noteworthy because the way that Colbert suggests viewer rebellion is to buy a book that he is selling! Ironically, the way to rebel in our consumer culture is to buy from non-mainstream sellers, or boycott massive corporations.
http://www.hulu.com/watch/644908#i0,p9,d0
Start around 4:10. End ~10:30.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nay31hvEvrY
ReplyDelete"Changes"- Tupac Shakur
For my blog post I decided to choose one of the most prominent hip hope figures to date, Tupac Amaru Shakur. More specifically, I decided to analyze his song “Changes” in which Tupac clearly and poetically outlines the injustices that African Americans face in America. Within the song, Tupac is able to give us an insight into the daily struggles that not only he feels but also his fellow peers. The song title, ‘Changes,’ is exactly what Tupac hopes to find in our world if poverty and hunger are ever to come to an end. He speaks of change and the glory that follows it, serving as a catalyst to end pain and struggle worldwide. The opening line, “I see no changes, wake up in the morning and I ask myself, if life worth living or should I just blast myself,” grabs the audience as Tupac introduces his story, and the world around him. The entire song switches from what he sees in his day to day life and what we can all do to improve the situation we are in. “I got love for my brother, but we can never go nowhere unless we share with each other. We gotta start makin' changes,” Tupac uses ‘we’ to unite his African brotherhood trying to instill the idea of change and the power behind it. This song is clearly a forefront in change in America reaching out to all types of communities and people when he explains, “Let's change the way we eat, change the way we live, and change the way we treat each other.” Tupac sets the stage for change and improvement to begin universally.
Tupac accurately shows us how prominent racism was during his time, and the effect of it. His distinct approach to rap is unparalleled, he is at the forefront of resistance music within hip-hop. Through the use of intense diction and rhyme scheme, Tupac pushes forward and hopes that his fellow African brothers do the same and continue his legacy of resistance. He eliminates anger and hatred and shows us how change can one day allow us to all “see a black President.” This example is extremely compelling to me, because Tupac brings about ideas that I can relate to. His examples are strong and his point is clear. Tupac’s form of resistance has reached out to so many people and his ideals still apply today. To me, Tupac had mastered every element of rap, having the ability to connect with so many individuals at such a young age. RIP
http://www.complex.com/art-design/2013/11/banksy-greatest-works/crayola-shooter
ReplyDeleteI know this is a pretty late post but I really want to share for fun and talk about one of my most favorite forms of rebellion: street art and my favorite street artist Banksy. This piece of art was actually tagged on the wall of the urban outfitters in Westwood and I got to witness it in person during my freshman year. The graffiti features a stencil of a child of asian decent holding a gun. Ironically the ammunition for the gun is a string of multicolored crayons. Surrounding the detailed and intricately drawn child are simple scribbles of flowers and butterflies. The work seems innocent at first glance but a closer look at the contrast of the menacing gun and "child-like" sketches creates an eerie sensation. Through this work, Banksy makes a commentary on the absurdity of employing child soldiers. I believe that the scribbles were purposely drawn to mimic the style of a child to show that these child soldiers are deprived of their innocence and youth. Holding a gun, as large as himself, the child soldier is forced into a harsh reality.
I believe street art, if done purposefully, is an incredible method of rebellion. Since graffiti is illegal, tagging in public areas can draw a lot of attention from the legal force and consequently the media. Public areas such as the walls of high rise buildings can be seen by hundreds of people a day due to all the foot traffic. Banksy is now a very well known artist though his identity is still hidden. His work extremely innovative as he often incorporates objects such as pipes and existing signs into his art. I am a huge admirer of Banksy's work and I believe the political and social commentaries portrayed through his art have influenced thousands worldwide. Art is so meaningful and is capable of expression so much without the use of any words.