Madonna has been a feminist icon since1982 until today. She started empowering women to control their own lives, to empower themselves sexually, and to not be afraid to break the stereotypes of women. Her feminist messages are heavily influenced in her songs and music videos. One example of Madonna empowering women to take control and make their own decisions was in the release of "Papa Don't Preach." This song and music video is about about an Italian, catholic, pregnant teenager. This is at the time when teen pregnancy was frequent, but still a dirty secret, something to be ashamed of, and a horrible tragedy within a family. Madonna's decision to keep her child instead of aborting it or giving it up for adoption was a powerful statement. She took control of her own life, despite what her family thought, and independently decided to keep her child. She is empowering other women to not be afraid to do what their heart tells them opposed to just doing what their parents say.
Madonna continued to make bold feminist statements by not being afraid to embrace and flaunt her sexuality. She was very body positive and encouraged other women to be as well. Madonna has taught young women to embrace their feminine and sexual side while still exerting total control over their lives. Madonna's music videos have been extremely sexually explicit with scandalous outfits and lyrics. They have been banned from being shown on MTV in the past and include her being chained up. Madonna portrayed women as being attractive, sensual, energetic, ambitious, aggressive and funny – all at the same time. A woman did not just have to be sexual object with no brain. A woman could embrace her physical attractiveness and still accomplish her intellectual goals.
Madonna also embraced stepping outside of the feminine stereotypes of being strictly girly. She released her album "Music" with her as a cowboy on the cover with a cowboy hat and western shirt. The last song on the album had the strongest feminist message. The song is called “What It Feels Like for a Girl.” Madonna relays the message that girls can wear jeans and cut their hair short because you can dress like a boy and still be a girl. She is promoting breaking the stereotypes that to be a girl you must be feminine. Madonna is also breaking the double standards society holds for women within this quote: “If you’re a girl, you have to play the game... You’re allowed to be pretty and cute and sexy. But don’t act too smart. Don’t have an opinion that’s out of line with the status quo. You are allowed to be objectified by men and dress like a slut, but don’t own your sluttiness. And do not, I repeat do not, share your own sexual fantasies with the world. Be what men want you to be, but more importantly, be what women feel comfortable with you being around other men. And finally, do not age. Because to age is a sin. You will be criticized and vilified and definitely not played on the radio."" Madonna is basically mocking the societal standards that are held to women to show how impossible they are to attain and how idiotic they are. Women should be allowed to express themselves however they please without men or society's approval.
Madonna also mentions that part of being a feminist includes supporting other women and surrounding yourself with women who will empower you. She states “As women, we have to start appreciating our own worth and each other’s worth. Seek out strong women to befriend, to align yourself with, to learn from, to collaborate with, to be inspired by, to support, and enlightened by.” She values the worth of strong women empowering other strong women in order to improve the patriarchy. Madonna also truly made history with her speech for her 2016 award of Woman of the Year at Billboard's Women In Music event. She began by stating she is thankful that everyone recognizes how hard it was for her to maintain her career with sexism, misogyny, constant bullying, and relentless abuse for her bold, feminist career. She then goes on to explain how during her first year attempting to make it as a singer, she was held at gunpoint, raped on a rooftop with a knife digging into her throat. She had also lost almost every friend to AIDS, drugs, or gunshots. Madonna learned from all of these tragic events that nothing in life is safe except for her own self-belief. So Madonna started to believe and empower herself and inspire other women to do the same. Instead of being a helpless victim, she decided to become stronger and better from her past. She also discussed her inspiration from David Bowie to embody the male and female spirit. She wanted people to know it was okay to cross-dress and express whatever identity you felt like. She realized the backlash of this because there were no rules for boys but so many societal rules for girls.
Madonna also educated people on sex with her “SEX” book and Erotica album. She told women it is okay to have sexual freedom and express your sexual side just as men do. Women should be prioritized in sex and their needs should be heard. However, Madonna was called a whore and a witch even though men stars were promoting erotica as well. For example, Prince wore fishnets, high heels, and exposed his butt yet he did not receive any backlash because he is a man. Madonna finally understood in that moment that women do not have the same freedom as men. However, Madonna wanted to embrace that just because she was not a man, did not mean she not just as worthy. She realized she did not need a man to accomplish anything. She knew if women united, this world could change and women could create sexual freedom.
All That's Interesting. (2018, February 09). The Evolution Of Madonna's Feminist Message. Retrieved from https://allthatsinteresting.com/madonna-feminist-message/2 Dorking, M. C. (2018, August 16). Madonna at 60: The Queen of Pop's cultural impact, from feminism to female sexuality. Retrieved from https://www.yahoo.com/news/madonna-60-queen-pops-cultural-impact-feminism-female-sexuality-062935359.html
Lynch, J. (2016, December 13). Madonna Delivers Her Blunt Truth During Fiery, Teary Billboard Women In Music Speech. Retrieved from https://www.billboard.com/articles/events/women-in-music/7616927/madonna-billboard-woman-of-the-year-labrinth
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