The Exception

Levy seems to constantly criticize every aspect of this notion of “raunch culture.” She creates this never-ending list of things women should not do. Her claim that women are making themselves inferior by exploiting their own sexuality, along with the sexuality of other women is a brave statement by a woman who fails to provide any type of solution. Her constant “women can’t do this” attitude is hard for me to take seriously. The women she uses for examples range from Heff’s playboy bunnies to very successful corporate women. After reading a decent portion of Levy’s book, I can honestly say that I don’t know one woman of that Levy would approve. For instance, here is a picture of Ariel Levy: woman who claims to know all about femininity. I am almost positive she is wearing make-up, she clearly has her hair done and is wearing what my mother would say, is a skimpy shirt. She seems to be eating her own words, doesn’t she? Levy, after explaining what raunch culture is, seems to show concern with people justifying this raunch culture as a feminist right.

So for my blog post, I decided to attempt to challenge Levy in all her glory. My video is of a tradition Tahitian dancer doing a traditional Tahitian dance. She is performing in the most important event in Tahiti, the Heiva, which has been around for 122 years. I grew up with Tahitian dancing embedded in my culture, along with the traditional Hawaiian Hula dancing. In fact, the first Hawaiians came from other parts of Polynesia, so it can be assumed that the Hula was born from the ancient Tahitian dance. Legend has it, that this type of dancing has been around since the ancient times of Polynesian culture. So with that being said, it will be my job to try and claim that Levy’s entire concept of “raunch culture” can be challenged with a trip back to ancient cultures. I am trying to prove that there are exceptions.

Because we already know Ariel Levy does not approve of “raunch culture”, I would first like to examine some of Levy’s claimed causes for why women participate in the diseased “raunch culture.” She feels women don’t want to be excluded. She sees it as a cry for attention and a need for a sense of false self-confidence. She also views it as a reason to make money and feels that if women do refuse to be a part of “raunch culture” they will be seen as a prude. Now, this Tahitian dancer: is she a part of raunch culture? According to Levy’s definition: absolutely. Were her ancestors a part of raunch culture? She is wearing a tiny top along with a tiny skirt, so basically she is wearing next to nothing. If this were on a girl walking down the streets of NYC, Levy would be the first one to judge her as a “female chauvinist pig.” But can anyone really claim this particular female to be one? She is participating in a tradition dance that has been around for centuries. So would it be fair to say that this is an example of feminism in this wave of raunch culture? Absolutely not, yet she seems to be wearing about the same amount as those girls in Playboy.

Speaking of those girls in Playboy, Ariel Levy believes that all they want is attention and flaunting their bodies give them a sense of self-confidence. Watch this dancer move. Watch her around 0:30 seconds. She faces her ass to the front of the audience, goes down and comes right back up. Sound familiar? I seem to remember a group of girls doing this, I think they were called strippers. Around 1:08 the Tahitian dancer is basically lifting up her skirt. Again, does that make her a “female chauvinist pig?” Sex is a part of Polynesian culture. I definitely think this has something to do with female sexuality, however I don't think it is a problem, and I’m pretty sure everyone at the Heiva festival in Tahiti will agree. So is every girl who shows a little skin, shakes her ass and lifts up her skirt a “female chauvinist pig?” Ariel Levy would say so, yet I’d beg to differ. Word of advice: don’t be too quick to judge.

In her book, she claims that women participate in this “raunch culture” to become successful and make money. But traditional Polynesian dance was never about attention, success or money. It was embedded in the culture. It was something that every girl (at some point in their lives) participated in. I’ve actually danced Tahitian one summer, and the hula another. It is simply part of the tradition. Now, here is a traditional Hawaiian dance. The cast is a little different. (the youtube embedding was disabled, so here is the link) Look around 1:40. Those men, grown men, are shaking their asses just like the girl in the Tahitian video. It’s not about attention, or money. It’s not about showing off your body to elude self-confidence. How can Levy say that every girl (or guy in this case) who shakes her but with skimpy clothes is desperate for attention? It just isn’t true. Maybe there is more to it.

As previously stated, Levy claims that women who refuse to participate in “raunch culture” feel that if they do so, they will be excluded or seen as a prude. In this case, it is completely false. I choose not to participate in traditional dance, although many of my friends and family continue to dance today. In no way was I ever seen as inferior for not choosing to wear tiny clothes and dance in front of big audiences.

Maybe Levy is just looking at Western Culture, or maybe Levy is just set in her ways. It was my job to try and play devil’s advocate. Compare my Tahitian dancer to Shakira in Andrew’s post. Both shake their hips, in fact, I’m pretty sure my dancer has less clothes on. Isn’t it true that Shakira is from Colombia? Maybe dancing like that is a part of Colombian culture. Maybe it has been around long before the Britney Spears and Beyonce music videos. It is awfully bold to say that every girl who participates in what Levy calls “raunch culture” is negatively affecting the progress of feminism. Maybe this claim that the rise of raunch is making women move backwards in their trek towards what they have been fighting for, for over a hundred years. But it isn’t fair to say that every girl who wears “slutty” clothes and shakes her ass is participating in this “raunch culture.” Maybe it's a different kind of culture. We live in a diverse nation, and people come from all kinds of cultures and traditions. This close-minded explanation of a “female chauvinist pig” fails to look beyond the porn star. The definition fails to include all types of females, although Levy claims that it does. Maybe some women do it for other reasons. So here it is. Here is the exception.