No Doubt & Lady GaGa: Twin Tales of Female Disempowerment
October 7th 2009 10:26
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In 2003 I was quite obsessed with a music video of No Doubt's called It's My Life:
You will notice some incredible stylistic similarities between not only the two songs (I refer to Lady GaGa's Paparazzi), but their visual accompaniments. Musically, both texts feature light, airy, sexy and ultimately haunting vocals by women who regard themselves as vulnerable in a man's world (see No Doubt's Just A Girl), put to mostly boppy music with brief about-face interludes which hint to something sinister at work. Both females are longing for something, resolved to hold onto their goals, and we are about to see that neither can overcome their insecurities to accept what has happened to them.
In the video clips, both women's goals turn out to be elusive and are ultimately thwarted. They are victims of a patriarchal, sexist/misogynistic society who decide to exact unlawful acts of revenge against their male foes, and are brought to justice by the legal system. Both females are working against themselves in a socially corrupt world.
Visually, Paparazzi appropriates many elements of It's My Life to make the link between them more obvious, and perhaps to enhance her own story with that of Gwen Stefani's femme fatale for the MTV-literate audience.
Both poisoning scenes occur when the female character adds a poisonous liquid to a sweet drink or meal. The camera is stationary, capturing the food preparation table, the villainous male holding a newspaper, and the blonde, homicidal bombshell. As she takes up most of the scene, he remains out of focus in the background, and then she turns to him. She watches as life flees his body and then leaves the scene of the crime.
Later she is apprehended, and the oppressive system she was railing against necessitates she surrender her agency in society. She can no longer be a productive person in it, her life chances are stripped away.
In No Doubt's case, none of the men Gwen's character supposedly murders turn out to have died after all - they have so much power that they are watching every move of her execution, laughing over their ingenious plan, and toasting their success. (Lady reverses the fake death convention, making her own death scene staged.) Gwen's pained journey towards death is literally switched off, and they turn out to be the reliable narrators, which positions Gwen's voice as even more unreliable.
Meanwhile Lady Gaga expresses her emotional restriction through her outfit, which recalls the Iron Maiden medieval torture device, and through reverting to the comfort of simulating fellatio on her finger when confronted by the male authority who orders her to 'look into the camera; walk away'. This seems to be a postmodern reference to GaGa's performance of misogyny on film. She is so immobilised by her fear of men who fear her that her vocals are only out-shouted by her silence, when it comes to being a real strong role model for women.
Both women act with teardrops painted onto their face. Powerful forces in the culture industry, they are bringing to light a deep-seated sadness over the female condition in the 00s. It's My Life may be set in the past, but people only ever evoke the past unless it's has a story to tell that is pertinent to the present.
Both videos are incredibly beautiful visual supplements to catchy, bittersweet, memorable songs. I was surprised to see Paparazzi appropriating It's My Life so extensively, so I thought I'd compare the two.
I stop here (for the present moment), and the rest is up to you - what about comparing the two texts has got you musing with delight and/or consternation and/or whatever?
You will notice some incredible stylistic similarities between not only the two songs (I refer to Lady GaGa's Paparazzi), but their visual accompaniments. Musically, both texts feature light, airy, sexy and ultimately haunting vocals by women who regard themselves as vulnerable in a man's world (see No Doubt's Just A Girl), put to mostly boppy music with brief about-face interludes which hint to something sinister at work. Both females are longing for something, resolved to hold onto their goals, and we are about to see that neither can overcome their insecurities to accept what has happened to them.
It's My Paparazzi
In the video clips, both women's goals turn out to be elusive and are ultimately thwarted. They are victims of a patriarchal, sexist/misogynistic society who decide to exact unlawful acts of revenge against their male foes, and are brought to justice by the legal system. Both females are working against themselves in a socially corrupt world.
Visually, Paparazzi appropriates many elements of It's My Life to make the link between them more obvious, and perhaps to enhance her own story with that of Gwen Stefani's femme fatale for the MTV-literate audience.
Lady GaGa even borrows Gwen's shoulder asymmetry, it seems - not to mention their hairstyles are almost identical!
Both poisoning scenes occur when the female character adds a poisonous liquid to a sweet drink or meal. The camera is stationary, capturing the food preparation table, the villainous male holding a newspaper, and the blonde, homicidal bombshell. As she takes up most of the scene, he remains out of focus in the background, and then she turns to him. She watches as life flees his body and then leaves the scene of the crime.
Lady GaGa's poison has a name, EuroClinic - representing her attempt to control and 'institutionise' her oppressor?
Later she is apprehended, and the oppressive system she was railing against necessitates she surrender her agency in society. She can no longer be a productive person in it, her life chances are stripped away.
In No Doubt's case, none of the men Gwen's character supposedly murders turn out to have died after all - they have so much power that they are watching every move of her execution, laughing over their ingenious plan, and toasting their success. (Lady reverses the fake death convention, making her own death scene staged.) Gwen's pained journey towards death is literally switched off, and they turn out to be the reliable narrators, which positions Gwen's voice as even more unreliable.
Meanwhile Lady Gaga expresses her emotional restriction through her outfit, which recalls the Iron Maiden medieval torture device, and through reverting to the comfort of simulating fellatio on her finger when confronted by the male authority who orders her to 'look into the camera; walk away'. This seems to be a postmodern reference to GaGa's performance of misogyny on film. She is so immobilised by her fear of men who fear her that her vocals are only out-shouted by her silence, when it comes to being a real strong role model for women.
Torture Chic, or An Armour of Self-Harm
Both women act with teardrops painted onto their face. Powerful forces in the culture industry, they are bringing to light a deep-seated sadness over the female condition in the 00s. It's My Life may be set in the past, but people only ever evoke the past unless it's has a story to tell that is pertinent to the present.
Both videos are incredibly beautiful visual supplements to catchy, bittersweet, memorable songs. I was surprised to see Paparazzi appropriating It's My Life so extensively, so I thought I'd compare the two.
I stop here (for the present moment), and the rest is up to you - what about comparing the two texts has got you musing with delight and/or consternation and/or whatever?
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