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Is Miley Cyrus "slutty"?

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CptnChan

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I know her last music video got a lot of hate for her "shaking her ass". My question though, is in regards to her new video "Wrecking Ball". It already has a lot of dislikes on youtube, and as of now it's not even a day old. She is completely nude in the video, and is barely censored by the width of a hair. 

 

The only thing is, I found the video to be pretty good. Aside from the part when she licks the mallet she's holding, I thought the video was very aesthetically intriguing. I think it's hard to deny the beauty of her form, and simple set design and camera angles made me stay glued to the screen.

 

So what do you think? Is the video classy? Is it overly sexual?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2FRPA3Gf8

 

(It's 3 AM and i can't figure out how to make the video appear here.)

Edited by CptnChan
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Frankly, I think that this video, and her performance at the VMAs, are immature and rather pathetic.  It's obvious to me that she's just desperately trying to shed her previous Disney channel, teenage idol persona.  She's trying to announce to the world that she's 'all grown up' now and having sex, and it just makes it that much more obvious how immature the attempt is.  It reminds me of a college freshman who hasn't been allowed to drink before, and thinks that binge drinking in college makes him 'an adult.'  That's not how adults treat alcohol, and this isn't how adults treat sex.

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Frankly, I think that this video, and her performance at the VMAs, are immature and rather pathetic.  It's obvious to me that she's just desperately trying to shed her previous Disney channel, teenage idol persona.  She's trying to announce to the world that she's 'all grown up' now and having sex, and it just makes it that much more obvious how immature the attempt is.  It reminds me of a college freshman who hasn't been allowed to drink before, and thinks that binge drinking in college makes him 'an adult.'  That's not how adults treat alcohol, and this isn't how adults treat sex.

 

I couldn't agree more with your assessment of her intentions. But besides what she's trying to say in her life, I was really just wondering about this video as an isolated piece of art. If it were someone else in the video, might it be enjoyable?

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Frankly, I think that this video, and her performance at the VMAs, are immature and rather pathetic.  It's obvious to me that she's just desperately trying to shed her previous Disney channel, teenage idol persona.  She's trying to announce to the world that she's 'all grown up' now and having sex, and it just makes it that much more obvious how immature the attempt is.  It reminds me of a college freshman who hasn't been allowed to drink before, and thinks that binge drinking in college makes him 'an adult.'  That's not how adults treat alcohol, and this isn't how adults treat sex.

She's not having sex in either video. 

 

Morally, I can't imagine why any rational person would have any issue with nudity of any kind.

Esthetically, I think the VMA performance was trashy and in general she looked terrible, but I love the music video (the tag to use to embed vids is "media").

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=My2FRPA3Gf8

 

P.S. The song is a ripoff. If I paid any attention to pop music, I would even know who it's ripping off.

Edited by Nicky
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I would say that, putting aside all "outside considerations," the video is aesthetically very well done. It's clearly very sexual, but I wouldn't call it "slutty." A "slut" is someone who sleeps with anyone and everyone. The fact that a young woman is shown to be having lustful cravings doesn't mean that anyone or everyone would satiate her appetite, or that anyone or everyone would be invited to try. In fact, the video itself is about her desire for one, and only one, and therefore the term "slutty" is completely inappropriate.

 

J

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A proper performance should concretize the song/lyrics and act in harmony with the meaning of the song. This is because it is a performance of something: of the song. To do otherwise is to create total confusion and divorce it from its purpose. I think her VMA performance was proper in the sense that it did correlate with the song, maybe a bit too trashy and simple... but that is what the song is about: Do what we want to, only God can judge us, "f*** the haters". 

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Miley Cyrus is following the Britney Spears/Lindsey Lohan career arc into personal destruction.  The conformity to that 'type' is remarkable, how does it happen?  That is the only mildy interesting aspect of this controversy for me.   

 

I am not interested in Cyrus or the video, I did not watch it.

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Morally, I can't imagine why any rational person would have any issue with nudity of any kind.

 

This.

 

Extend it to sex of any kind (with safety and other self-interested caveats), and "maturity," also. The term "slutty" is leftover from crap ideals about sex and treatment of women. No man is ever called "slutty" no matter how much he satisfies his sexual desires. And satisfying sexual desires is not bad, and so the negative connotations associated with "slutty" are false.

 

There's nothing wrong with immaturity or trying to "grow up," either. Clearly, part of Miley Cyrus as a person growing up is shedding her Disney image, there's no getting around it. Is this negative, this "immaturity?" Growing up is a fact of life for everyone. The difference is she's in the public eye. Should she end her career while she grows up?

 

The video is ok, the song is cliche -- Miley Cyrus isn't the prettiest of girls, but they made her look great in the video with the lighting (achieved by Terry Richardson, no less, the man whose reputation is built on photographing celebrities in unflattering light!).

 

Obviously people care about this because of her old image -- Nobody said a thing about Lady Gaga getting completely nude for "art" last month and then dancing mostly nude on MTV. If anything they praised her for it (her great ass) because Gaga is unapologetic for herself and didn't begin as a Disney Princess.

Edited by JASKN
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Try to refrain from using the following terms:

  • Dirty (as it relates to sex, unless actual dirt is involved)
  • Filthy (see above)
  • Slut/Slutty
  • Smut/Smutty
  • Whore (unless there is a transaction involved, but even then this term is derogatory; see: prostitution)
  • Indecent
  • Naughty
  • Raunchy

Sex is none of those things.

 

Music videos make no sense to me. Music is music--observed the ears. The video part is... strange. The video of the performers making the actual music helps your enjoyment of the music sometimes, but anything else is... weird to me...

 

Other than that, Miley and the rest of her ilk seem to have a niche in the ~2.3% of adult males left on the planet who still do not have consistent access to porn and are stuck with this sort of thing. For the rest she is simply a poor specimen. Or at least that's what's consistent with my context...

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Extend it to sex of any kind (with safety and other self-interested caveats), and "maturity," also. The term "slutty" is leftover from crap ideals about sex and treatment of women.

 

I don't think so- what pisses people off is the nauseating oversexualization of everything: commercials, billboards, song lyrics, music videos, movies, etc. It's crept upon pretty much every type of entertainment available. I see Cyrus as a scapegoat for this position.

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I don't think so- what pisses people off is the nauseating oversexualization of everything: commercials, billboards, song lyrics, music videos, movies, etc. It's crept upon pretty much every type of entertainment available. I see Cyrus as a scapegoat for this position.

I really doubt this. Consider: there has never been a modern view of sex that is good, that doesn't stigmatize it in some way, or much worse. In the very near past people's lives were ruined because other people were uncomfortable with their own sexuality and bodies and ostracized those who got caught having sex or who bucked the messed up sexual norms. People are still killed in the world today because of their sexual choices. Does your claim fit this context? Miley Cyrus is a victim of these still-held beliefs -- specifically that she should have remained "innocent," suggesting that sex is guilty.
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Miley Cyrus is a victim of these still-held beliefs -- specifically that she should have remained "innocent," suggesting that sex is guilty.

 

 

This.

 

The idea that the culture is "oversexualized" is a bit off, in my view. Our society (along with all societies that I know if in history) has viewed sex in an unhealthy, guilt-laden way because of mystical moral views. Many in that kind of society are so hypocritically self-righteous about sex and sexuality that they end up attacking people who don't share their Elizabethan qualms. The real victims are the people who don't have a healthy moral view about sex -- they end up doing heaps of damage to their psyche.

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Miley's beauty and erotic appeal have really gone downhill these last few years. She did it on purpose I know, to leave behind her childhood image, which is good is some sense. But not the way she did it. And she's evidently a stunningly phony and empty person and singer -- as most pop stars are. She doesn't seem to have a single good or original thought in her head, personally or musically.

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Yeah I hate the Madonna/Pink thing. I also agree with Dante on the idea that she is trying to escape Disney. 

 

I think what people forget is that she is a young woman. Just like a Lohan was. 

 

Just about every woman I know went trough a crazy phase around 18-20. When I see this stuff I just think of all the girls I have known who went crazy for a few months after finding out that they could have lots of sex and drink a whole bunch whenever they wanted. Its like that but with billions of dollars and the paparazzi. 

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I don't think so- what pisses people off is the nauseating oversexualization of everything: commercials, billboards, song lyrics, music videos, movies, etc. It's crept upon pretty much every type of entertainment available.

What standard are you using to determine when something is "oversexualized"? 

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Just watched the video. Wasn't paying attention to the lyrics, but I didn't like her voice, her hair, she looked like an objectisexual with the sledge, liked her Docs she was wearing, but not on her, didn't like her lip color clashes with the Docs.

Only good thing is is that her hair is not a stark contrast to her eyebrows. I hate seeing blonde hair with dark eyebrows. If you must dye you hair light, do highlights or something, when the roots show your real color, only then does it help the dark eyebrows. I'm not bothering looking at the lyrics. Bray-ay-ache - can't stand how she sings that.

She's nothing to get an erection over - she can scream how sexually mature she is all she wants to, but she does nothing for me, and I'm not listening anymore.

Edited by intellectualammo
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I thought the VMA performance was trashy but I can't find anything wrong with that video. It's a very well done video that fits the song.

 

Add "trashy" to my list above (again, unless there is actual trash involved [whatever floats your boat]).

 

I am serious here: this is an actual place where philosophical-minded people can really make a difference. Change the vocabulary.

 

Now, shall we try to describe this performance without using any "legacy" terms?

 

Ayn Rand pointed out that the problem with things like this can often be that it doesn't take sex seriously enough. I think that applies somewhat to this performance. She's basically making fun of something very important (yet failing to be funny which is a total fail).

 

Thus I wouldn't call this performance any of those terms, or even make reference to sex at all any more than you'd comment on the meaning of her lyrics. It was just lame, unentertaining, moronic, not pretty, etc. Use terms like that (and there are probably a lot better ones), but don't let yourself subsume, in any way, the evil premise that sex is in any way negative. Using terms the right way here is a nice way to insert philosophy into the conversation.

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I really doubt this. Consider: there has never been a modern view of sex that is good, that doesn't stigmatize it in some way, or much worse..

Miley Cyrus is a victim of these still-held beliefs -- specifically that she should have remained "innocent," suggesting that sex is guilty.

 

Let's bring this down to an individual level, because I don't want to get into "society's view of sex." If I see Cyrus' music video and react to her humping a wrecking ball nude, or licking a hammer, in a negative way, does that mean I "stigmatize sex"?

 

You said yourself that every kid grows up, goes through puberty, dyes their hair, has sex, gets married, (goes to rehab, in the case of celebs), etc. Cyrus is certainly not excluded from this. Blaming sex for the way Miley treats it is like blaming vodka for the way an alcoholic abuses it. I don't have to stigmatize sex to know that the way Miley treats sex on camera is.. cheap and unmeaningful.

 

2colbw7.jpg

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Let's bring this down to an individual level, because I don't want to get into "society's view of sex." If I see Cyrus' music video and react to her humping a wrecking ball nude, or licking a hammer, in a negative way, does that mean I "stigmatize sex"?

 

You said yourself that every kid grows up, goes through puberty, dyes their hair, has sex, gets married, (goes to rehab, in the case of celebs), etc. Cyrus is certainly not excluded from this. Blaming sex for the way Miley treats it is like blaming vodka for the way an alcoholic abuses it. I don't have to stigmatize sex to know that the way Miley treats sex on camera is.. cheap and unmeaningful.

I wasn't blaming "sex" for what she is doing (not sure what you mean?), I was blaming the recent public reaction to her on that public's view of sex. I have no idea what is going on in Miley Cyrus' head -- her current media attention is the most I've ever thought about her. I don't know what kind of person she is. But based on the little that I've seen recently, I'd say she's just trying to grow up amid Internet media scrutiny, which is not easy. I'm not saying she's doing a great job of it, but in general I don't blame too badly the celebrities who "fail" that scrutiny, aka. the modern curse that is fame.

 

I'm not sure we really disagree? Miley Cyrus' behavior maybe isn't something to emulate, but I also don't consider it all that outrageous. Our culture still punishes open sexuality. Do you disagree with any of that?

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If I see Cyrus' music video and react to her humping a wrecking ball nude, or licking a hammer, in a negative way, does that mean I "stigmatize sex"?

 

 don't have to stigmatize sex to know that the way Miley treats sex on camera is.. cheap and unmeaningful.

 

2colbw7.jpg

 

I had a completely different interpretation than you. First, I didn't she her humping a wrecking ball. Second, I don't think the nudity and licking the hammer were cheap and meaningless. They were supposed to represent her vulnerability and show the sexual passion she had for him. At the same time, what she is licking is the weapon she is going to use against him. Interesting. I liked the video.  

Edited by thenelli01
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