2. The lyric at this point is “be a little inappropriate”. This
portrays a post feminism view as it shows a more
“female gaze” outlook as it objectifies the men and
makes her appear powerful. The man seems stunned by
her behaviour so then shows shock at a woman using
her sexuality against him and objectifying men and
almost switches it all around and allows him to portray
what women feel when it’s the other way round. He
then does a backflip and shows excitement about the
fact a beautiful woman has just grabbed his bum and the
fact he doesn’t complain shows he is allowing the
objectification. If she was unattractive, however, he
would have an entirely different reaction and would
again show how women perhaps feel when it is reversed
onto them but that’s another matter.
The way she takes control and exudes power and
confidence is admirable and is very post-feminist.
HOWEVER, at the end of the video it is shown that the
whole “taking control” thing was all a dream. This could
be a symbolic representation of the unachievable dream
that women will be equal to men.
Post-Feminist interpretation of Britney Spears’ “I Wanna Go”
3. This is supposed to be a very empowering moment for
Britney. She completely controls the police officer whilst
stunning a young boy in the process of flashing and exposing
herself to them. The policeman becomes very distracted and
turns all attention to her. This could be seen as empowering.
However, the fact he then “frisks” her and completely
objectifies her body could perhaps contradict this idea and
only further enforce the need for feminism. Though she is
using her “assets” to control a man, it is still from a male gaze
in my opinion. This scene is trying to emphasise both post-
feminism and feminism as it shows the need to become
equal to men but it also only does that through the
sexualisation of her body which contradicts the initial reasons
for feminism.
Also, the fact she shocks and possibly arouses such a young
boy through these actions does not look good on her and if
the video was in fact made in the name of feminism or post-
feminism it creates a bad name for feminists. However, I
highly doubt this video was made with the intention to fight
gender stereotypes and for the equality of sexes because the
provocative outfit does not adhere to the original ideas
about feminism as she is using her sexuality to win over a
man and that seems to be the most important thing she
strives for. It could be argued that that is post-feminism.
4. Feminist view on “I Wanna Go” by Britney Spears
Here she is shown on top of a taxi and is in the middle of the shot. She is in complete control of the
situation and then proceeds to bringing down the men that keep photographing her with a microphone
and they fall. This could represent empowering women which would in turn demote men? This scene
clearly shows this and makes the women seem more powerful. However, she is the only woman in the
whole video so perhaps it only empowers her and acts on her own agenda of boosting her image.
However if the video is a microcosm and she represents all women this could be far more positive as she
is portrayed as a strong and independent woman and completely subverts the idea of being passive.
