Taylor Swift’s The Man isn’t a brave stand against misogyny, it’s a cheap shot for ‘feminist’ clichés
Taylor Swift’s latest video is more “baby’s first political protest” than anything resembling quality entertainment. The Man is basically a lyrical version of a 12-year-old’s Twitter feed, not a deep critique of the patriarchy.
If the man Taylor Swift is portraying in her latest music video (unironically entitled The Man) is really how Swift perceives men, one really has to wonder what kind of men Swift has been hanging out with her entire life. The Man portrays toxic masculinity at its most cartoonish and stereotypical – so much so I’m surprised it didn’t take a break in the middle of the song to “mansplain” its sophomoric message to the audience.
Indeed, this video has everything an aspiring pre-pubescent feminist who’s struggling to pass her women’s studies classes could want: female objectification, public urination, ageism, greed, all topped off with a healthy dose of “manspreading” for good measure.
In the video, Taylor Swift plays a “Wolf of Wallstreet”-type of male caricature that would seem more at home in a Brett Easton Ellis novel alongside yuppie serial killer Patrick Bateman than in a pop music vid for teens who’ve yet to discover what good music really is. In the video, the “male version” of Taylor Swift sets about acting like the most insulting version of a man possible, all to a song by Swift that is about how much better and easier her life would be if she were a man.
Ironically, Swift’s view of men seems to be based around the stereotypical type of New York “liberal elite” that enjoys the status of being part of the “one percent” while flaunting his wealth and privilege as he enjoys a life of complete hypocrisy. One of the more interesting scenes in the video is where “Male Swift” is playing in a tennis tournament for a “Woman’s Charity” while intercut with scenes of him in a strip club and marrying a trophy wife 58 years in the future – basically highlighting the hypocrisy of so many virtue-signaling leftist elites who support all the right causes, but don’t actually act in accord with those causes in their daily life – like Leonardo DiCaprio, who uses his fame to advocate for climate change policies all the while flying between the four houses he owns on both coasts of the US in his private jet.
Swift’s version of what men are in The Man seems more in-line with degenerates like Harvey Weinstein than the vast majority of men in the world. As with Weinstein, Male Swift is a self-obsessed rich white man who uses his money and influence to get away with acting like a complete jerk, all the while abusing women for his own amusement.
One cannot say that Swift is unclear of who her audience is. Her fans are largely of the female demographic, so tapping into the “men are bad” message that third-wave feminists seem to preach can certainly resonate with Swift’s fanbase without much push-back. And after getting slammed for her “politically neutral” approach to staying out of politics after Donald Trump’s rise to the presidency of the United States, Swift has given into the lunatic fringe of her industry and chosen to take political stands that seem more in-tune with her “New York liberal elite” music industry bubble than any real authentic system of political beliefs she might actually possess.
But outside of the echo chamber of liberal elitists who exist in New York and Hollywood, the representation of men in Swift’s The Man music video is not only flat out wrong, but also incredibly insulting. The notion that Taylor Swift is using her fame and influence to promote this type of misandry as some sort of feminist statement under the guise of ‘female empowerment’ is not only misguided, but extremely dangerous.
The question should be asked: What advantage does preaching “all men are bad” and “all men are jerks” and “all men deserve to be ridiculed and put in their place” have to society at large? Even if one accepts the notion that “male privilege” is inherently evil and a detriment to women everywhere, how does elevating women at the expense of men create any deeper understanding of the issue or evoke any type of real change?
Empowering women – be they celebrities like Swift or normal, everyday professionals, wives, mothers or daughters – shouldn’t be done at the expense of men. It should be a positive thing that elevates both genders to a better understanding of the issues, and a belief that we can achieve respect and equality together without having to vilify one side or the other.
Also on rt.com Taylor Swift calls out GEORGE SOROS for investing into her music ‘without consent’But the “rabid Twitter mobs” that Swift is catering to with her video for The Man don’t really care about seriously addressing the issue of gender inequality. They are simply focused on tearing down all men, and Swift is simply giving them what they want without thinking about the ramifications of doing so.
Ask yourself: Do you want your daughters growing up thinking all men act the way Taylor Swift portrays men in this video? Do you want young girls growing up resentful and distrustful of men? Do you want your sons to feel attacked and bullied by powerful women advocating for them to be shamed and subjugated by the whims of angry new-wave feminists?
Please try to think of the answers to these questions, because it’s obvious that the newly political Taylor Swift hasn’t bothered to.
Like this story? Share it with a friend!
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.
