Now I’m a pretty big decrier of gay jokes – but there are subtle differences between the gay wedding depicted in Saturday Night Live's video and your standard gay joke. Comedy plays on the opposite of what you expect – for example, when Rob Ford falls over whilst throwing a football (seriously, watch this): it’s funny because he’s a football coach and supposed to be a pulled-together member of society leading our great city (oh well). So if you deconstruct the videos referenced by Flory-Clark, they are not making fun of being homosexual - proliferating stereotypes or portraying gay men as "lesser" - they make fun of known straight guys in a scenario which is the opposite of our expectations. With the spring break rap, it turns the whole idea of sowing one’s wild oats on its head (now that gay men and women can get married in some places) when the male rappers sing: "Down here it's our time/Spring Breakers/Get fucked up/Then find Mr. Right/and get monogamous".
What’s more troubling to me (perhaps as I’m a straight female and not a gay man?) is advertisements like this one that recently came up in my Facebook feed. I actually took some time to analyze my feelings about it, reconciling them to my core beliefs about sports and porn. What’s very obvious is that the director is taking a traditionally male sport and explaining the rules by using scantily-clad female athletes. Already, the athleticism of the game is demoted to a spot well below how these girls look (despite the fact they all seem to be quite athletic). Although they appear serious about the physicality of the sport, the shots of their various body parts detract from any marvel one might have at their skill.
There is a certain amount of sexual viewing that goes along with watching sports (I always catch my breath when Freddie Ljundeberg’s shirt comes off) but that is not the main reason for the Lynx match. We may think sexual thoughts about people in all sorts of scenarios - like a hot doctor in scrubs. But - the primary purpose of doctors in scrubs is not to look good for patients, just as the primary reason we go to sports matches to not to check out the athletes' bodies.
I’m also supportive of porn as long as it is ethically-sourced, so to speak. So why did this ad bother me? Was it not just a chance for boys to look at tits and ass?
And the answer lies in my criticism of Flory-Clark’s piece: this video was not made as comedy, pulling a 180 our expectations of rugby players the way Zach’s video made light of the heterosexual freedom rites before (gay) marriage. It was made to view women’s bodies. And there is already a well-worn field in which to view women’s bodies: porn. Having a bunch of women play a sport in order for men to ogle their bodies instead of marvel at their athletic skill is reductive and sexist.
No comments:
Post a Comment