American female athletes pose semi-nude in Sports Illustrated before the Olympics even begin, and all is right with the world. Men have more idealized images to consume, and the athletes claim the pictorials are "sexy not sexual." Fast-forward a few weeks...Canadian female hockey players, covered from neck to blade with nary a cleavage in sight, do some celebrating on the ice after their gold medal performance and that is somehow in bad taste? They disgraced Canadian national identity, the sanctity of the Olympic ice, and shockingly, appeared to not give a damn what anyone thought. They reclined on the ice, smoked cigars, downed Molsen Canadian, and generally had a blast. I don't have a daughter, and I hope I never do frankly. But if I ever found a baby girl on my doorstep and was forced, against my will, to raise her myself, I'd certainly prefer that she live in a world where we smile, even applaud images of supposed female athlete debauchery rather than fawn over the topless, commodified, and cliched women in SI.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Sodom, Gomorrah, or None of the Above?
American female athletes pose semi-nude in Sports Illustrated before the Olympics even begin, and all is right with the world. Men have more idealized images to consume, and the athletes claim the pictorials are "sexy not sexual." Fast-forward a few weeks...Canadian female hockey players, covered from neck to blade with nary a cleavage in sight, do some celebrating on the ice after their gold medal performance and that is somehow in bad taste? They disgraced Canadian national identity, the sanctity of the Olympic ice, and shockingly, appeared to not give a damn what anyone thought. They reclined on the ice, smoked cigars, downed Molsen Canadian, and generally had a blast. I don't have a daughter, and I hope I never do frankly. But if I ever found a baby girl on my doorstep and was forced, against my will, to raise her myself, I'd certainly prefer that she live in a world where we smile, even applaud images of supposed female athlete debauchery rather than fawn over the topless, commodified, and cliched women in SI.
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i too applaud the Canadian women for celebrating with their emotions, living in the moment, and truly enjoying the taste of Olympic victory, and the gold medal. The only chink in their armor was that an underage teammate was pictured drinking alcohol, otherwise i have absolutely no problem with their on ice displays of celebration. Every year the Stanley Cup is awarded to hockey's world champion, and every year the guys celebrate on the ice with the cup and drink beer/champagne out of it. Personally i see no difference between the 2 celebrations, except for the underage drinking, and i feel the double standards women have to deal with in the sporting world is absurd. I too don't know what i would do if i had to raise a daughter, but i do know i would encourage her to celebrate victory in the heat of the moment and enjoy life.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the Sports Illustrated pictorial goes, so long as men are in power in the sports and media worlds, they will sell women's sports with sex. It is the only way to get the "average male" to consume women's sport on a consistent basis. Sports Illustrated is a huge platform/spotlight so i'm pretty sure if they are gonna run sexy and provocative photo spreads, anyone would do the same, given the opportunity. One day women will get credit for their athletic achievements, just not in our generation.
Dustin Frediani, SJSU
I think its really disappointing that Lindsay Von would pose for a picture like that. She's half nude and this is not the summer olympics. I think things like this only contribute to the sexist ideologies about women. She is not portrayed for her strength or skill in the sport, but rather her sexual body image. I saw her on Ellen yesterday and despite her gold medal wins for the USA, I had no respect or interest in watching her. Call me judge mental, but it is what it is.
ReplyDeleteThe most disappointing thing about all this Olympic sex sells ridiculousness is that these women are suppose to represent role models for future generations of athletes, both male and female. These women have chosen to be remembered for their semi-nude poses in a popular magazine rather then their accomplishments as athletes. First and foremost Lindsay Vonn should be thought of as an amazing skier, but instead she is thought of as the hot American Olympian. Some of my male friends have argued that I should be happy to see Sports Illustrated "celebrating" their athletic builds rather then the usual skin and bone models with breast implants. I disagree. They are choosing to be remembered as sex symbols, not to be remembered as Olympic athletes. Maybe what it boils down to for them, plain and simple, is that in the end they will be remembered.
ReplyDelete"To be or not to be- that is the question." -William Shakespeare
First I'd like to ask, where are the half naked men? Why is it that I have not seen some cute olympic hockey players or snowboarders posed next to their sticks or boards in speedos? I mean if women are doing it men should be too. I think it's ridiculous that sports illustrated has to sell sex in order to focus on women sports. They rarely mention women in their magazine so they have to sell a "swimsuit" edition. Not to go to far off topic but, I was looking on the SI website and they have a section online for the co-stars of Dancing with the stars. Chelsie Hightower is one of the contestants and she is posing with her partner Ty Murray. Of course she is in a swimsuit and he is dressed in a cowboy outfit. There is a video of the photoshoot and she is dancing around him in a bikini pretending to whip his lasso. Yippe Kay Yay! It makes me feel embarassed for her and women. Our sexuality is being used to sell products and in return we have perverts buying these magazines doing god knows what! These magazines (our bodies/sexuality) are being sold to disgusting pigs so the owners of sports illustrated (most likely men) can profit off of it. Do these women even think about who is looking at these magazines? What does their dad think? Is her family emabrrassed? I mean ya these women have gorgeous bodies, but don't they have a little more class or respect for themselves? I'd rather see the women hockey players drink and light cigars on the ice. I think that's awesome quite frankly. People underage are drinking all over the world, there really is no stopping them, but women can stand up for their rights and stop posing nude. Women have worked hard for their rights, the least these women can do is stand up for them!
ReplyDeleteI have no problem with how the Canadian hockey celebrated, and I certainly have no problem with how the American female athletes displayed their well sculpted athletic figures.
ReplyDeleteDoes that mean I'm easy?
i think we were each given a body and we do as we please with it but then again we can't complain about our portrayal in the media in relation to sports if we contribute to the scandals by posing nude...we have to accept the critics and understand that a man who poses nude does not cause as much controversy as a female would...there's nothing wrong with having a baby girl, some of us actually posses values, morals and our dignity
ReplyDeleteAfter witnessing the "debate" in class today about whether cheer-leading is a sport or not, it makes me realize how powerful socialization is. it is a great pity how many future Olympians are lost because they are socialized into a pseudo sport with a dead end career path and ridiculously high rate of unnecessary injury. plus cheerleading is one of the most misogynistic activities; didn't we read about how professional cheerleader are chosen by their looks above all in the book? So when a woman fervently defends criticism directed at cheerleading, it just shows how much more work feminism and feminists have to put in.
ReplyDeleteWow this is really really random again.
ReplyDeleteWell it isn't surprising how sex sales. Everyone seems to promote it to make money. Some athletes not only want the sport fame but also the media fame.. to market themselves as famous celebrities and to gain more power..which i think is a shame.
Although I would never ever want any girls to idolize this person.. its a tough world out there.
We would want to stop it, but its a tough world like i said before. People want money, sex, and power these days.
The picture is disgraceful and will make more money anyways..I blame the ignorant people who enjoy this kind of stuff..
Think about the children before your sick desires..
-Bobby Van
As years have gone by, there have been a large number of medias whom promote naked or half naked girls to attract more customers. If we look back into the magazines from 20-30 years ago, there were almost promotions about sex, or any sexual figures. However, as years gone by, sex has become a very open subject that people talk about and promote about.
ReplyDeleteI am totally against the posting pictures of half naked girls because I see as if they are selling their body in a high class way. Don't these girls have self-respect for their own body!
I am disappointed that this Olympic athlete would pose her body up for money, but we can't really judge because it is her body and her life. She should be able to do what she chooses to do and not to do. Therefore we should not judge. Yet, it is my personal choice and knowledge of my choice that I would not do this type of posing for money.
As of her celebration, I am totally for it because everyone needs to enjoy themselves in their own way. These celebration beverage and drug is not good for the healthy, but we can't do anything about it because she can still play even though she drinks and smoke. It's not a good promotion to others, but we shouldn't stop people from what they enjoy in life. If we continuously judge others for their bad habits, people in the society would not be allow to do ANYTHING.
She has a nice body, if she wanna show it off, let her be
-Kelly Leung
I agree that there have been many women who sell their body for sex, money, and power. It is a shame, but who are we to judge! These males or females are comfortable and proud of their body, and have the privilege to be capable to do that. It is their life and their choice of what they want to do with it. In the past, promoting sex was against the law. But since the media has tried to make it like a social conversation, it is our choice and others choice if they want to be involved with the conversation or not. When people have sex talks around me, I choose to walk away. But some people are interested it. We were all born and raised differently, therefore, it is not right for us to judge her for what she is doing with her life and her body.
ReplyDeleteI can honestly say that she has a really nice body and she us blessed with it. Not everyone has the motivation to keep their body in true natural shape. It takes a lot of effort to maintain it.
On the other hand, if people did not purchase these posters or magazines with these half-naked girls, the promotion of these picture would not be so exposed in the media. i agree that sex sells but it is the consumers who keeps the companies continue their sex sale business.
As of the medalist drinking and smoking after her victory, it is her choice with what she wants to do. If smoking a cigar and drinking a beer is her relief of stress, she earned it. We all have different ways to spoil ourselves sometimes. If we restricted ourselves from what is "bad" for us, then almost all food in the world is not good for us, because it causes CANCER!!!
We live once, so just enjoy it!!!
-Kelly Leung
From looking at the images included in this article it is easy to see the image most Americans would prefer to see a women appear in. Since a large portion of sports spectators find that sports played by women which are dominantly considered a male sport, such as hockey, are less entertaining it seems that for women athletes to get any attention they must prove their femininity. By posing half naked this Canadian athlete is now thought of as a sexy women that happens to be an athlete, not the other way around which I am sure she would have preferred. In the second picture the same athlete is shown enjoying a celebratory cigar and beer while wearing a bulky full coverage outfit, which is obviously an unacceptable appearance for a female amongst most Americans. While her behavior in the second image is a bit more masculine that the media would like to portray a female doing, I believe if she were wearing a more revealing outfit people would have been more accepting of the images. People just cannot seem to accept women acting not even a little bit traditionally feminine, when around athletics. I think the media and public need to think of how they would react to winning an Olympic game and then they would realize that the woman's behavior is acceptable whether it fits the social norms or not.
ReplyDeleteEmily Benstead, SJSU
These images are very interesting to me because I can not believe how some females athletes can show their bodies in such ways. Yes it is their body and they do have the right to do what they wish with it, but in my opinion why expose your body to the society when the only thing you receive in return is attention. I guess it would be a different situation if they received something more important in return of exposure of their bodies, but attention is not enough.
ReplyDeleteThey are women and as women they should respect their body and use it in the right way and also be athletes and not models for the society.
First off, I do not understand how these half nude athletes can defend themselves by claiming they are posing "sexy, not sexual." How does one's athletic image (especially a skiier's) relate their athleticism with risky and semi-nude photographs? If they cannot accept the truth that they are paid for these images for attention and basically nothing else, I guess I would tell these women "good luck!" Yes, of course they are well-known athletes for a reason, but I honest think if they worked hard enough they could begin to represent a better label through exhibiting their strengths and raw talent. I feel that many of these professional athletes do this for either attention or insecurities of their own bodies (because they may feel masculine and do this to make up for it). Anyways, either way, its not a good answer or way to represent themselves,their teammates, friends, and family.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, I applaud the Canadian female hockey players for feeling no need to dress scandalous and pose "sexy" but instead they celebrate with strength, happiness, and dignity. They celebrated just how men's hockey players would and seemed to have a lot of fun which was rightfully deserved. It's a shame Canada frown upon this event because to me these females athletes showed true pride and felt no need to degrade themselves for increased media coverage or attention. Instead, these athletes won the right way, over good, hard teamwork and winning.
Briana Shimizu
Kin164
This display helps illustrate the importance, and the existence, of gender stereotypes in society. As Americans, we make every attempt to have people, including these athletes, conform to social norms. So when we see women smoking cigars and drinking some beverages, we automatically feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, having a female athlete "half-naked" on a sport magazine is within our social norms, thus we don't see anything wrong with it. This example shows how we, as a social world, rather create female social norms that are "sexually appealing" than those that are considered "masculine" (such as smoking and drinking).
ReplyDeleteThe Athlete in the sport seems like she is only making it worse for the women like the Canadian hockey team, the women who are trying hard to decrease the inequalities between males and females in sport.
ReplyDeleteThe women showing off their body might feel that no matter how great of an athlete they are, they will never be compared to a male in the same sport. Succumbing to the publication of sex. The Canadian hockey team are being compared to men, and it is frowned upon, but there are man different type of people in the word, why do all females have to act a certain way? If a group of females fell differently and project themselves unlike the rest, they are criticized and jeered at.
Kaitlin Lynch kin 164
We as a country are so accustomed to the objectification of women that when it stares us directly in the face we still don't see it. The picture above is a good example of the sexual objectification of women in America and its sad that pictures like that have to be used to get any kind of attention for the athlete. But I guess in today's society...sex sells.
ReplyDeletePeter C. Kin 164
Marketing 101: sex sells. Sad, but true. If female athletes want to pose in playboy and other similar media that is their decision. Similarly, if the Canadian women's ice hockey team wants to celebrate on the ice with beer and cigars that is there decision.
ReplyDeleteLooking at these two scenarios there seems to be a battle of femininity here. On the one hand there is extreme femininity being expressed through the media's images of women half dressed. On the other there is the Canadian women's ice hockey team which is fully clothed and drinking beer and smoking cigars. I am not sure one is worse than the other, it just depends on your opinion. I wonder if some of the anger towards the ice hockey team is due to the fact that they are acting unlady like by drinking beer and smoking cigars. Similarly, there might be some homophobia intertwined here because this behavior is viewed as unfeminine.
While it is reasonable to understand why Canada was upset with it's athletes it could have been worse. At least the team didn't decide to pose for playboy as a celebration.
There is such a double standard when it comes to women doing things that men do. Woman's rights have come a long way, but there is still so much discrimination that women go through. I personally believe that there still is a big gap when it comes to men and woman's rights. Our society is still run by men who enforce rights made out for men. It appears as if there is this invisible line that separates what men are allowed to do. The female Canadian hockey player was looked down upon greatly by society because of the bold celebration she exhibited in public. If a man did what she did, the situation would mostly likely be viewed as humorous and he would to an extent be praised. What the female Canadian hockey player did was just an example of gender roles that society has labeled us with. It is okay for men to celebrate in an obscure way after a win of some sort, but women can't take on these roles because it is not in the context of how a woman should act, according to society.
ReplyDeleteNim Baylon Kin 164