Robin Thicke and the degeneration of our society
In recent news, “Blurred Lines” singer and songwriter Robin Thicke hasn’t apologized yet. While colleges and feminist groups across the country desperately try to fight rape culture, Thicke has taken a valiant stand against them. His hit alternates between descriptions of taking advantage of women and pure sexism. The song is the latest, and worst yet, in a series of horrible songs played on the radio.
The lyrics of “Blurred Lines” should cause some raised eyebrows or popped eyes when one listens to the lyrics for the first time. Lyrics such as “I know you want it” resemble someone trying to talk himself into having non consensual intercourse. Both the censored and explicit versions of the video push the boundaries of misogynism to levels not seen since the 1950’s.
T.I. and Pharrell should take a portion of the blame as well. Pharrell produced the song and sings the intro and outro. T.I. keeps it real, unleashing some lyrics too offensive to print, yet not offensive enough for the song to be banned from the radio. Both of these men are also married with children.
In a stunning act of cultural appropriation, Miley Cyrus twerked on Thicke at this year’s VMA awards. Some would say this is a just punishment for him, but I think we could do a little bit more. The worst punishment would probably be giving him a sense of shame, for he obviously doesn’t have one currently. How else could he point at girls while singing “you the hottest b**** in this place,” and then go home and look his wife and son in the eye?
I’m fond of catchy songs, and I don’t dislike stuff just because it’s popular. Blurred lines has a nice beat and rhythm, and T.I. has some good wordplay in his verse. If the lyrics were better, I’m sure I would like the song.
If we accept “Blurred Lines,” then it won’t be long before there’s an even worse song coming out. We have to identify when a line has been crossed, or else it will always happen again. So, next time you’re humming along to a catchy song you’ve just heard on the radio, listen to what the lyrics are saying before you start singing out loud.
Food for thought:
Robin Thicke’s lyrics are an excellent example of the inappropriate themes that the radio is able to broadcast without censorship. While Thicke hardly uses expletives, his message easily gets across. T.I.’s passages reveal a deeper meaning of “blurred lines” in regard to sexual consent and vague symbols of attraction. The depiction of women in “Blurred Lines” only backtrack our progress as women’s rights activists and as educators of the next generation.
Censorship has very little purpose. While “bleeping out” expletives gets rid of the audible word, the meaning is unchanged. If your intention is to regulate how children are exposed to foul language on the radio, you would be hypocritical not to censor hateful or abusive themes and entire verses, or even inappropriate titles from being read.
I’m glad to see this understanding illustrated by a high school student, as well as by a young, male member of society. We need to have more discussions like this in our classrooms, and it was refreshing to read this article.