Althouse: "One of the most indelible images from last night's VMA awards was Beyoncé, midway through a show-stopping 16-minute medley, standing alone on stage with the word 'FEMINIST' emblazoned in giant letters behind her."

August 26, 2014

"One of the most indelible images from last night's VMA awards was Beyoncé, midway through a show-stopping 16-minute medley, standing alone on stage with the word 'FEMINIST' emblazoned in giant letters behind her."

"It was a bold and empowering feminist tableau — one that was undercut the following evening by this tone-deaf segment from last night's Emmys, which featured Sofia Vergara being spun around on a pedestal like a a human trophy. Because she's a woman, get it?"

85 comments:

Martha said...: Beyoncé also sang Bow Down Bitches and spent an inordinate amount of time grinding on a pole.

Feminist avatar?; 8/26/14, 12:10 PM
Shanna said...: Ridiculous.; 8/26/14, 12:10 PM
John henry said...: I just watched 30 seconds or so of the Beyonce spectacle.

I guess I am just old, old, old. This is music? This is entertainment?

Not to me. What dreck.

Have a little Keely Smith and Louie Prima for a palate cleanser:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzUXuBeXN44

Keely Smith is one sexy woman who did it her way. I've had a crush on her for more than 50 years.

John Henry; 8/26/14, 12:15 PM
Anonymous said...: Sometimes feminists teeter on the brink of self-parody. Other times they dive in headfirst.; 8/26/14, 12:18 PM
Mid-Life Lawyer said...: Indelible in its pure idiocy. While I didn't stick around for this "show-stopping 16-minute medley," I did watch the first 15 minutes or so of the program and I came to the conclusion that we, as a people and a culture, deserve Obama. Obama is what we, as a country, qualify for.; 8/26/14, 12:23 PM
MaxedOutMama said...: What's the diff, precisely? I don't get this at all. Totally clueless.; 8/26/14, 12:23 PM
Hagar said...: Not only a woman, but proud of it!; 8/26/14, 12:25 PM
damikesc said...: I cannot tell --- is this parody? Is the writer that blind?; 8/26/14, 12:27 PM
Tibore said...: "One of the most indelible images from last night's VMA awards was Beyoncé, midway through a show-stopping 16-minute medley, standing alone on stage with the word 'FEMINIST' emblazoned in giant letters behind her."

Because superficial acts amounting to nothing are in "reality" powerful statements. Right?; 8/26/14, 12:29 PM
damikesc said...: And people think feminists lack any sense of humor...; 8/26/14, 12:31 PM
Rumpletweezer said...: Beyonce kept slapping her own butt and referred to it specifically several times during her performance. Sophia Vergara, on the other hand, was engaged in a parody of that kind of behavior. So who's the real feminist?; 8/26/14, 12:34 PM
Hagar said...: I'm a girl, and by me that's only great!
I am proud that my silhouette is curvy,
That I walk with a sweet and girlish gait
With my hips kind of swivelly and swervy.

I adore being dressed in something frilly
When my date comes to get me at my place.
Out I go with my Joe or John or Billy,
Like a filly who is ready for the race!

When I have a brand new hairdo
With my eyelashes all in curl,
I float as the clouds on air do,
I enjoy being a girl!

When men say I'm cute and funny
And my teeth aren't teeth, but pearl,
I just lap it up like honey
I enjoy being a girl!

I flip when a fellow sends me flowers,
I drool over dresses made of lace,
I talk on the telephone for hours
With a pound and a half of cream upon my face!

I'm strictly a female female
And my future I hope will be
In the home of a brave and free male
Who'll enjoy being a guy having a girl... like... me.

When men say I'm sweet as candy
As around in a dance we whirl,
It goes to my head like brandy,
I enjoy being a girl!

When someone with eyes that smoulder
Says he loves ev'ry silken curl
That falls on my iv'ry shoulder,
I enjoy being a girl!

When I hear the compliment'ry whistle
That greets my bikini by the sea,
I turn and I glower and I bristle,
But I happy to know the whistle's meant for me!; 8/26/14, 12:36 PM
wendybar said...: Yeah, Beyoncé is really a feminist. Riiiiiggggtttt, and I am the pope!!! Come on, did you ever look at the lyrics to her songs???; 8/26/14, 12:36 PM
Brando said...: Society--please stop trying to make Beyonce happen. She is an icon only to herself, a narcissistic paragon of glitzed up slumtrash and poor taste. I guess getting rich off your sex appeal and making repetitive music about how awesome you are and marrying a wealthy and influential rap mogul counts as the feminist ideal these days. She must be quite the inspiration to young girls around the country who until now didn't realize that they too could achieve this dubious dream.; 8/26/14, 12:38 PM
Brando said...: "Beyonce kept slapping her own butt and referred to it specifically several times during her performance. Sophia Vergara, on the other hand, was engaged in a parody of that kind of behavior. So who's the real feminist?"

Vergara as far as I know has found success due not solely to her looks but also her skills as a comic actress, and did so in a country with a different comic culture than her home country, no less.

Beyonce is the low-budget Diana Ross, except Diana Ross had some real talent back in the day.

Apparently feminism these days means giving the right lip service to the right people. Strength and accomplishment mean little compared with that.; 8/26/14, 12:42 PM
ron winkleheimer said...: It almost seems like your actions aren't what matters. As long as you utter the correct shibboleths you get a pass.

But that's just crazy, couldn't be.; 8/26/14, 12:43 PM
madAsHell said...: You give me a dozen feminists, and I'll give you a dozen definitions of feminist.; 8/26/14, 12:45 PM
Shanna said...: Beyonce kept slapping her own butt and referred to it specifically several times during her performance. Sophia Vergara, on the other hand, was engaged in a parody of that kind of behavior. So who's the real feminist?

This!

The only thing better is if Sofia would have had 'FEMINIST' written behind her. Because that's girl power.

The real problem is that none of these idiots know what feminism is even supposed to mean anymore. Because that's the only way you get idiocy like this.; 8/26/14, 12:45 PM
David said...: Easy now. Anna Silman is a serious thinker. The is her best article since July, when she wrote "A Comprehensive History of Jay Z and Beyoncé’s Relationship."

You go, girl!; 8/26/14, 12:47 PM
Birches said...: How can anyone married to Jay-Z be considered a feminist?

Vergara as far as I know has found success due not solely to her looks but also her skills as a comic actress, and did so in a country with a different comic culture than her home country, no less. This.; 8/26/14, 12:50 PM
Brando said...: That's the rub, isn't it? They wonder again and again why only 20% of Americans identify as "feminist"--after all, 80% of Americans are not in favor of equality among the sexes, ending discrimination, etc? How can this be? And then we see self-proclaimed feminists scold women for having a sense of humor about themselves, or daring to be pro-life, or have any conservative viewpoint at all, and even if such women are self-accomplished and self-reliant, they suddenly are being called "anti-feminist" as if these scolds should have any right to the term.

So when that happens, a lot of people recoil from the term--after all, who wants to associate with the morons who worship Beyonce because of her pandering sign, or vote for Hillary! because "first woman president" trumps "competence" or "not being a morally bankrupt crook". And then the so-called feminists gnash their teeth and rend their garments because how in 2014 can so many people not want to associate with such values?; 8/26/14, 12:52 PM
JRoberts said...: Picture, if you dare, Beyoncé performing this same gig 40 years from now. It won't be pretty.

Kind of like Cher is now.

Jenifer Lopez is half-way there.

Ick!; 8/26/14, 12:52 PM
libertariansafetyguy said...: So she's a feminist who's sister beat the shit out of her husband and said not a word. Got it.; 8/26/14, 12:55 PM
madAsHell said...: oh,....and what exactly is the target demographic??; 8/26/14, 1:02 PM
robinintn said...: But Beyoncé had a feminist sign while she tantalized men by faux masturbating and simulating anal, so she's a hero, get it?; 8/26/14, 1:03 PM
Fritz said...: Another validation of my position to never watch award shows.; 8/26/14, 1:07 PM
John henry said...: Blogger Brando said...

I guess getting rich off your sex appeal and making repetitive music about how awesome you are and marrying a wealthy and influential rap mogul counts as the feminist ideal these days.

This put me in mind of another couple: Pia Zadora and Mishulum Riklis (or whatever his name was)

Beyonce is the Pia Zadora of 2014!

John Henry; 8/26/14, 1:22 PM
Shanna said...: I liked Beyonce better when she was in Destiny's child, before she went all diva. She was also singing this:

"Can you pay my bills
Can you pay my telephone bills
Can you pay my automo-bills
If you did then maybe we could chill
I don't think you do
So, you and me are through "

Feminism!; 8/26/14, 1:30 PM
rhhardin said...: I think of W.C.Fields's Egbert Sousé, "accent grave over the e"; 8/26/14, 1:31 PM
policraticus said...: How much dumber can our culture get?; 8/26/14, 1:31 PM
Drago said...: In a just world Beyonce would be considered "ok" and crack would be headlining.; 8/26/14, 1:33 PM
Mea Sententia said...: I saw the Sofia bit and thought it was cute and a bit silly. She seemed to enjoy it. To make a thing out of it strikes me as even sillier.; 8/26/14, 1:42 PM
Nonapod said...: And the circle of absurdity is complete. The "chauvinist pig patriarchy" have apparently convinced women that grinding on a pole like a stripper equates to feminism. Good job modern culture!; 8/26/14, 1:44 PM
Bill, Republic of Texas said...: Tibore said...

Because superficial acts amounting to nothing are in "reality" powerful statements. Right?

8/26/14, 12:29 PM

Yes. According to the JV team running our government. Remember "the Promise of Hashtag" nonsense? If it is good enough for the Russians its good enough for Beyonce.; 8/26/14, 1:45 PM
lllll Alaska Jack said...: Here's my humble question.

Suppose, instead of "FEMINIST," the big sign behind Beyonce had said the opposite? "F--K FEMINISTS," or something like that.

Would the artistic coherence of the performance have been changed? Improved? Worsened?; 8/26/14, 1:45 PM
Birches said...: Mollie Hemingway nailed it.; 8/26/14, 1:45 PM
Emil Blatz said...: Quoting G. Gordon Liddy: "The trick is in not minding."

That's exactly how I deal with Beyonce, Sofia what's-her-name and the Emmy's. Amazing that this much energy is expended over inconsequential shid like that.; 8/26/14, 1:50 PM
Rumpletweezer said...: John Henry said:

"Beyonce is the Pia Zadora of 2014!"

Are you sure she's not the Charo of 2014?; 8/26/14, 1:51 PM
Jason said...: "Bitch, please."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-mA9OMP3DE; 8/26/14, 2:02 PM
Anthony said...: More evidence that the Secret Male Patriarchal Cabal has fully co-opted Feminism to its own purposes: Half-nekkid hotties pole dancing is considered 'empowerment'.

Next goal: Public toplessness as Feminine Empowerment.; 8/26/14, 2:04 PM
Brando said...: "Yes. According to the JV team running our government. Remember "the Promise of Hashtag" nonsense? If it is good enough for the Russians its good enough for Beyonce."

Whoa whoa whoa there! If I recall correctly, everyone got all hashtaggy on that Nigerian terrorist group that kidnapped a bunch of girls (they also killed a bunch of boys but who cares about boys, right?), and no less a luminary that the president's wife looked all sad and serious with her "bring back our girls" sign, which may have made the U.S. look more impotent because you'd think being married to the man who commands the Navy Seals should mean more than having to take her campaign to Twitter, but never mind.

But the important thing, as I recall, was that the result of that Twitter campaign was none other than the Boko Harams looking at their smart phones from the wilds of Africa, and seeing the uproar, and then dropping their lattes as they asked "what have we become???" and then promptly freed all the girls.

That is what happened, right? It wasn't just a dumb feel-good stunt exposing the vacuity of slacktivists, who can now count Michelle Obama among their numbers?; 8/26/14, 2:08 PM
Hagar said...: That is so 50 years ago.; 8/26/14, 2:10 PM
Brando said...: "More evidence that the Secret Male Patriarchal Cabal has fully co-opted Feminism to its own purposes: Half-nekkid hotties pole dancing is considered 'empowerment'.

Next goal: Public toplessness as Feminine Empowerment."

Hey! Stop giving away our secret plans! You'll ruin everything!; 8/26/14, 2:10 PM
ron winkleheimer said...: "Next goal: Public toplessness as Feminine Empowerment."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/27/narcissister-free-the-nipple_n_5537767.html; 8/26/14, 2:12 PM
buwaya said...: Boko Haram seems to be beating up the Nigerian army these days.

http://africajournalismtheworld.com/tag/nigerian-army-flees-boko/; 8/26/14, 2:12 PM
Blue@9 said...: What's bizarre to me is that the two seem pretty much the same, except that one has the word "FEMINIST" in lights behind her. Basically, if Vergara were spun around with "GIRL POWER" in bright lights, she'd be heralded for making a bold statement.; 8/26/14, 2:18 PM
Brando said...: Didn't Boko Haram sing "Whiter Shade of Pale"? Because now that's in my head for the next hour.; 8/26/14, 2:21 PM
Michael said...: The current crop of "artists" and celebs is vile on stilts. Our system of mandatory education is not working.; 8/26/14, 2:23 PM
The Godfather said...: Not so, Anna Silman! Sophia wasn't spun around on her pedestal "Because she's a woman, get it?" She was spun around because she is a beautiful, sexy, funny, and talented woman. Want proof Anna? Ask yourself: You're a woman, but no one has ever asked you to be put on a pedestal, have they? Want to guess why?

Because you're so serious and wise that no one would think of asking you to do that? Yes, I'm sure that's the reason.; 8/26/14, 2:28 PM
B said...: Everything Beyonce and Nicki Minaj were doing were far more sexual and demeaning than Sofia Vergara spinning on a pedestal in a gown.; 8/26/14, 2:40 PM
I Have Misplaced My Pants said...: When Beyonce sang the National Anthem at the Super Bowl in 2004 she was such a class act. Performed it beautifully dressed in a lovely tailored suit with a simple ponytail.

Sigh.

I don't know what that has to do with feminism but she was so much more appealing before her brand coarsened so much.; 8/26/14, 2:45 PM
MayBee said...: People just feel so invested in Beyonce, for some reason. Her performance at the VMAs opened CBS This Morning on Monday, complete with report about the beautiful family all being together on stage. So weird, to feel so involved in a family you can't know.; 8/26/14, 2:53 PM
HoodlumDoodlum said...: Pop Culture Is Filth.; 8/26/14, 2:53 PM
mtrobertsattorney said...: When it comes to cutting edge feminist fashion, beauty and sexuality, you just can't beat Lena Dunham. Check her out at the Emmy Awards.; 8/26/14, 3:08 PM
traditionalguy said...: I believe she is declared the war between the sexes is over and the women won and the vanquished men had better bow down...or what, she did not say.; 8/26/14, 3:23 PM
Brando said...: "I believe she is declared the war between the sexes is over and the women won and the vanquished men had better bow down...or what, she did not say."

Well, the Battle of the Elevator was clearly won by her sister.; 8/26/14, 3:26 PM
FullMoon said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 8/26/14, 3:31 PM
n.n said...: Huh. So, feminism = slut. It seems that modern society has taken two steps back.; 8/26/14, 3:33 PM
hstad said...: n.n said..."Huh. So, feminism = slut. It seems that modern society has taken two steps back." So what you are saying that Rush Limbaugh was correct on that other slut????; 8/26/14, 3:44 PM
Revenant said...: So basically my decision to skip both the VMAs and the Emmys was the right call.; 8/26/14, 3:47 PM
Sam L. said...: Blogger damikesc said...

And people think feminists lack any sense of humor...

Well, we can see they are funny in their humorlessness...; 8/26/14, 3:49 PM
jr565 said...: Right, like Beyonce doesn't use her body and looks to sell records; 8/26/14, 3:49 PM
MathMom said...: Michelle Obama takes her daughters to see this woman perform. She thinks this woman is a role model. I watched the whole thing. GAD.

Go to 6:28 in this video and watch for 15 seconds. Yes, the girls are wearing Butt Floss, but no one except consenting adults or a gynecologist should see this.; 8/26/14, 3:51 PM
William said...: I missed both shows, but on the news I saw the deeply moving moment when Miley Cyrus used the platform to publicize the plight of the good looking homeless. Homelessness is particularly disturbing when it happens to young, good looking people. Perhaps Miley can use some of her fame and money to establish a shelter for good looking people down on their luck. Well, at any rate, she made a start last night towards addressing this problem. I bet it's especially acute in Hollywood........I think it was callous for those people at the VMA awards to not pay any kind of tribute to Suge Knight who has done so much for the record industry and who was nearly killed because of America's lax gun laws.; 8/26/14, 4:23 PM
sakredkow said...: oh,....and what exactly is the target demographic?? I think the GOP base is the one with the big fat target on their backs with this one.

I don't know Beyonce from Weird Al, other than she is freaking huge. And if she says she's a feminist, the word is now very important to a lot of young people.; 8/26/14, 4:31 PM
hombre said...: Paeans to Beyonce from the feminists for singing "Bow Down Bitches" in front of a sign that says "feminist." Who wins the hypocrite contest on that one?

As for Sofia Vergara "being spun around on a pedestal like a human trophy. Because she's a woman, get it?"

The "trophy" bit is just editorial license from some pinched twit who doesn't "get" that Sofia is on the pedestal precisely because she is not just a woman.; 8/26/14, 4:47 PM
Krumhorn said...: His lovemaking with Beyoncé has been detected by a seismograph.

When he holds her purse, he looks manly.

He is the most interesting man in the world.

"I don't often hang with Beyoncé, but when I do, Solange and Jay Z lay down a beat to Jungle."

- Krumhorn; 8/26/14, 5:04 PM
Smilin' Jack said...: It seemed to me that the pedestal segment was intended to proclaim the fact that nowadays a woman can be a star even if her butt is too big. Wasn't that one of the main goals of feminism?

And really, that dress made her butt look big enough to affect the tides.; 8/26/14, 5:09 PM
Wilbur said...: "I think of W.C.Fields's Egbert Sousé, "accent grave over the e"

I think of "Wouldn't you like to have a butt like that full of nickels?"; 8/26/14, 5:11 PM
averagejoe said...: FullMoon said...
The only tests I pass are the ones asking"are you a psychopath?".

LOL! Now that's funny!; 8/26/14, 5:15 PM
Steve M. Galbraith said...: "The "chauvinist pig patriarchy" have apparently convinced women that grinding on a pole like a stripper equates to feminism. Good job modern culture!"

Yes, lots of sex ladies. Anal, oral, everywhere.

We patriarchical oppressors surrender to you.

Congrats on a great victory.

You idiots.; 8/26/14, 5:29 PM
Unknown said...: Beyoncé’s form of feminism looks a lot like being sexually provocative which far from the idea of equal rights in the original women’s suffrage movement.
Feminists everywhere are praising the “empowering” performance. Is this the new ideal feminists are striving for?
To me, the audacious performance set a horrible example for not only young feminists, but the younger population in general. This is not going to earn women any more respect, and if you are a feminist who is looking to 'end slut-shaming' I would suggest you stop dancing naked on a pole and then accepting an award as a role model for the entire youth of this country.
I don't dislike Beyonce, but I dislike the hypocrisy in her endorsement of "feminism" that was displayed at the VMA's.; 8/26/14, 5:33 PM
J Lee said...: Of course, those complaining about Vergara and the comedy bit here would presumably get the vapors if they looked at 10 minutes of how Latina women are objectified on some of the shows on the Spanish-language channels in the U.S. But they'd be too gutless to actually say anything because that would be a direct challenge to the Spanish-language viewers enjoying those shows, and if you're the no-sense-of-humor/politics-all-the-time type of person upset with the Emmy bit, you're also never going to complain about the wider objectification, because votes (never mind that one of the Spanish-language channels objectifying el babes fabuloso, Univision, is owned by ueber-Democratic Party donor Haim Saban).; 8/26/14, 5:42 PM
Steve M. Galbraith said...: Here's the incredible beauty of women.

Carmelite Nuns.

But we celebrate the above.

We're in some sad times.; 8/26/14, 5:47 PM
Forbes said...: Brando...
Anthony...

Got you guys beat. Last Saturday night, about 1 am at a bar on Third Avenue in Manhattan, a young 20-something French girl sauntered about topless outside, with he boyfriend and another male, then went in and ordered a drink, stayed for a few minutes, and then was off... Let's just say there was a lot of laughing going on for the same male patriarchal cabal reason.; 8/26/14, 5:50 PM
Douglas B. Levene said...: Mollie Hemingway in The Federalist has an excellent commentary on the cognitive dissonance felt by the left as they try to reconcile Beyonce's booty + crotch wagging with Vergara's sly humor, one being apparently sexist and the other not. Very droll, Barney, very droll.; 8/26/14, 6:21 PM
eddie willers said...: And people think feminists lack any sense of humor...

"How many feminists does it take to screw in a lightbulb?"

"That's not funny."; 8/26/14, 6:48 PM
glenn said...: Those of you who criticized the luscious and hysterically funny Ms. Vergara appearance at the Emmys last night are clearly anti Hispanic racists. Stifle yourselves; 8/26/14, 7:19 PM
Unknown said...: Feminist is just another way to pronounce your adherence to the religion of progressive socialism.; 8/26/14, 8:02 PM
kcom said...: "........I think it was callous for those people at the VMA awards to not pay any kind of tribute to Suge Knight who has done so much for the record industry and who was nearly killed because of America's lax gun laws."

And Sonny Bono was killed because of America's lax skiing laws.

And Paul Walker was killed because of America's lax driving laws.

And David Carradine was killed because of Thailand's lax autoerotic asphyxiation laws.; 8/26/14, 8:10 PM
Anonymous said...: I havn't watched award shows in decades. I'm glad I didn't watch it.; 8/26/14, 8:26 PM
Paul said...: From what I see feminists are self destructive.

They will go to more extremes till they destroy themselves.

Meanwhile regular folk will just keep on going on with their lives, marrying, having kids, sending them to schools, going to church, and well, being decent people.; 8/26/14, 9:52 PM
ilvuszq said...: Both beautiful sexy women. One is black and one is not. ergo.; 8/27/14, 6:55 AM
chillblaine said...: Aren't words that end in -ist pejorative? Why is the word feminist any different? It signals a belief in feminine supremacy.

I believe in equality before the law, but feminism has gone off the rails. Its become more like liberation theology.; 8/27/14, 8:56 AM
Robert Cook said...: John Henry said:

"Have a little Keely Smith and Louie Prima for a palate cleanser:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzUXuBeXN44

"Keely Smith is one sexy woman who did it her way. I've had a crush on her for more than 50 years."

I'll call your "Old Black Magic" and raise it with "Hey Boy, Hey Girl."; 8/27/14, 9:40 AM