Celebrities are constantly being
put under the spotlight for just about everything. When a celebrity first hits
fame, is virginity part of the business plan? It seems that most of the
celebrities during my childhood came out and said, “I’m a virgin!” I think the
reason why each of these stars made this statement is because their managers
felt that it would make them come across as innocent, desirable and pure. When
a star is labeled as a “virgin” they are looked at as sexy but not sexual, and
their morality is held at a high standard.
For instance let’s look at Jessica
Simpson.
First
of all, is that a cross around her neck in that sexy picture with the low cut
top? Jessica Simpson, daughter of a Baptist minister, started her singing
career touring Christian youth festivals and True Love Waits events. In Jessica
Valenti’s article, The Cult of Virginity,
she states, “Even when she went mainstream, she publicly declared her
virginity—stating that her father had given her a promise ring when she was
twelve years old—and spoke of her intention to wait to have sex until
marriage.” In some cases religion can be a factor for some of these
celebrities, however; I am starting to think that the reason these stars
publicly announce their virginity is to become a desired sex symbol and “pure”
young women which is extremely desirable to men. I have noticed that more women
than men publicly announce their virginity because of the double standard; if
men are out having sex it is considered a good thing. If women are out having
tons of sex they are just looked at as “damaged goods.” As soon as a star announces
his or her virginity the tabloids blow up, the press is writing articles left
and right, interviewing the star etc. All this attention seems like it is good
for business, no?
By
making this business decision, Jessica Simpson is not only gaining the
attention of older men, she grabs the attention of parents who have young
girls. Parents think, “As a singer, who is a virgin, her music must be
appropriate to listen to.” Jessica Simpson became a young woman that young
girls could look up to. Parents are able to use her as an example—“abstain from
sex until marriage!” In Kristen Myers and Laura Raymond’s article, Elementary School Girls and
Heteronormativity, they observed young girls talking about television,
books, music, crushes, sex and dating all through a heteronormative lens. In
this article, Myers and Raymond state, “Sex—‘kissing in bed’—was gross yet
provocative. Despite its allure, these girls implied that sex was inappropriate
for them. They also declared it inappropriate for the teenage celebrities who
they believed were actually having sex.”
I
thought it was interesting that these young girls knew sex was not right for
them at a young age. I wonder if the media has a role in all of this. Besides
Jessica Simpson, Brittney Spears, Miley Cyrus, Hilary Duff, Taylor Swift, Joe Jonas, Tim Tebow all declared that they were virgins at one point. All these stars
have a huge following of young girls especially. Does their virgin status make
them more appealing to parents and their children? I think it’s all part of the
business plan.
Check out these links:
Hi Katie! Thank you for this post, it was really interesting and I totally agree with you. I definitely think celebrities that claim they are virgins, especially when they are new to the business, do it because it is good publicity. A lot of the celebrities you discussed in your blog (or those featured in the links you provided) were marketed to younger audiences when they began their careers, therefore proclaiming their virginity and their plans to wait to have sex was a great PR tool for those trying to make money off of children and their families. What I find worrisome about this phenomenon, and I think Jessica Valenti’s article would backup, is that this emphasis on virginity does nothing more than equate a woman’s worth with her body. I think it would be refreshing to take virginity out of the discussion and instead focus on the talent, intelligence, or generosity of these celebrities.
ReplyDeleteMichelle,
DeleteI liked how you stated, "I think Jessica valenti's article would backup... this emphasis on virginity does nothing more than equate a woman's worth with her body." It is amazing to see these stars become sexual objects but claim that they are virgins. I totally agree with your last statement! Why is virginity such an issue? Shouldn't we be focusing on talent, intelligence an generosity? It's so true! This society gets way to wrapped up in who is or who is not having sex and with whom. Maybe if we all just focused on the artist/actor for their work instead of their bodies the industry would become a much better role model for young girls especially.
I completely agree about this double-edged sword of "virginity" in popular culture. I think the concept of the "Disney" stars" plays a huge role in the concept of virginity. I know for stars such as Miley Cyrus, the second she began to diverge from this "Disney" ideal and began to perform sexual roles in the media, she received a lot of backlash from previous fans as well as parents who denoted this behavior as unacceptable. I also agree with what Michelle said above. I do not think it is appropriate nor necessary to discuss the sexual role of the stars in the media. I believe this is a personal decision and one that does not need to be published on newspaper headlines. Our society's obsession with sexuality, however, is an even greater issue. I think it would be nice to focus on the talent of these stars as that is supposedly what made them famous anyway, and focus less on what they do on their own time.
ReplyDeleteHi Tara!
DeleteThanks for your post! I agree with you; sexuality and virginity should be a personal decision to express to the public. I think many of these stars are being forced to "come out" or state that, "They are virgins" to gain some attention in some way. It makes no sense though, why is sexual identity and virginal status such a big deal? Maybe they should be trying to put out the next hit song instead of saying that "They will not PUT OUT!"
Hi Katie! I totally agree that it is all part of the business plan. What won't people do to make money? I think they are doing this simply to expand their audience and to appeal to both children and their parents. Although it is smart business, I think it's unfair. Whereas people already idolize these famous people, they are now emphasizing the "Cult of Virginity," according to Valenti. This teaches people to stigmatize those who aren't virgins and may even cause them to feel guilt in their own lives if they weren't able to match up to this standard. Although I do think that it is in their best interest to abstain from sex for as long as possible, I do not think that it is fair that they are being guilted into it by celebrities.
ReplyDeleteShuray,
DeleteIt's so true, "what won't people do to make money"? In this day in age it seems like there are no limits or boundaries for these stars as well as the general public! I loved what you said about how people might feel guilty if they can't live up to "the standard." By labeling young celebrity women as virgins it is creating yet another standard for girls to live up to. Besides being thin with big boobs, you also have to be a virgin to be the perfect woman. Being a virgin should be a personal decision, not the media's decision.
I stumbled across an article that touches on how problematic "selling virginity" can be. Elizabeth Smart, a rescued kidnap victim who had been held for 9 months, spoke of the experience after she was recovered. She mentioned how her upbringing taught her that women who had sex before marriage were like a chewed-up piece of gum, and so any woman who had sex before marriage was without value and undesirable. During her months in captivity, she was sexually assaulted. Because of her upbringing, she felt worthless and felt no will to live or escape because she had lost her value. It's incredibly troubling that the abstinence-only education she received, which is reinforced in icons like Jessica Simpson, led to an dangerous state of mind for Elizabeth Smart. Girls are receiving messages that they should be pure yet desirable; and with that, we're looking at a generation of girls who feel like they've failed in some way. They are either too pure or too sultry.
ReplyDeleteHi Meghan,
DeleteElizabeth Smart's story is just so heartbreaking and really lends insight to how our society feels about women who have had sex before marriage. I feel horribly for her because she now feels like a chewed-up piece of gum after being sexually assaulted. No girl should have to go through something as horrific as that. Not having control of one's body is extremely frightening and my heart goes out to her. This was not her choice and she shouldn't feel like damaged goods nor should society cast any judgement upon her. I love what you said about "They are either too pure or too sultry," society needs to have a happy medium and allow young girls to not feel like they have failed if they have had sex.
Kate great post!!!! I completely agree with the notion that many celebrities use this as a business ploy. I just never understood how they can claim being a virgin but then posing in provocative ways for the male gaze. This was really evident for Jessica Simpson and her reality show that continuously brought up her virginity. Moreover, i have always been a T-bow fan and remember the big deal of him waiting until he was married to have sex. This made so may fall in love with him and many people came out and hoped their daughter would date a man like him. It just gives off that notion that he is safe for their daughters. because why? parents fear men taking advantage of the girl?
ReplyDeleteJordan,
DeleteIt's so true!! How can these women pose in provocative poses for the male gaze and claim that they are virgins? It is so interesting that Tebow came out and said that he was waiting until marriage. Funny how if a famous good-looking man comes out and states that he is a virgin, girls start to fawn over him and the parents hope their daughters will someday be with a man like him. I agree with you, I feel that when a man is a virgin, girls feel like there isn't the pressure of having sex; which is funny because how do you know they are telling the truth?
Katie, thanks so much for posting. This was so interesting to read. I really think that for some people, virginity is seen as a marketing strategy. These stars become the ultimate sex symbol by stating that they are not having sex. This seems a little odd but I think that it connects to the idea of virginity representing morality. I remember in high school a guy friend telling me that there was something exciting for boys when they knew they could be a girls "first". He said that they all like the idea of having something "pure" that no one else had enjoyed yet. At the time I did not think much of this but even in that sentence he referred to the girl's virginity as "something" demonstrating the fact this idea is commodified. The whole idea of sexuality as a determinant of morality is so interesting me. Thanks again for the post!
ReplyDeleteColleen,
DeleteI have heard the same thing, guys like when girls are virgins because they like the idea of the girl being pure. I feel as though men enjoy taking a girls virginity because it acts as a sort of game and pride thing with the other guys. Sexuality unfortunately is a determinant of morality. Our society should start judging people based on their character, talents, and intelligence. I always thought it was interesting how if a man sleeps around they are looked at as popular and manly, but if a woman sleeps around she is looked at as a slut or "damaged goods."
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ReplyDeleteKatie, the topic of your post is something that always crossed my mind as a girl growing up with these "wholesome" "pure" yet "sexy" female role models targeted at our preteen and teenage girl age group. When I was a teenager, I attended abstinence conferences like "Pure by Choice" as well as female religious conferences such as "Revolve Tour" to gain strength and endorsement in my promise to remain "pure" until marriage. While there were a few honestly pure role models who truly waited until marriage to do anything sexual at these events, I, however, couldn't help notice how so many of the females would claim to be "pure", "innocent" and "virginal" yet would represent a physical appearance contrary to the images of purity. I found the same thing to be true of the teenage-targeted female "role models" in the media except, in the media, these women were even more sexualized.
ReplyDeleteThe way these women claimed to be sexually pure, yet embodied the external image of sexy by being overly sexualized is very contradicting and, in my opinion, there outward appearance refutes or counteracts their declared "purity." I believe a lot of female celebrities, especially those featured on Disney Channel and other outlets geared toward teen girls declared "purity" in order to strengthen their image as a role model to young girls and, consequently, increase their success and fame. Outside of Disney, however, you would see these female celebrities strive to appear sexy and desirable to a male audience in order to increase their fame and popularity by being viewed as a desirable women. I have even found articles in Seventeen and Cosmo Girl to support this idea of female stars trying to move past Disney and their teen audience as they grow up and compete with the older, mainstream female celebrities to be viewed as a desirable sex symbol to men. One such example is Ashley Tisdale's feature in Cosmo Girl titled "Ashley Tisdale Blows Off Her Good-Girl Image," which discussed her desire to move beyond Disney Channel and abandon her good-girl image in efforts to be viewed as a grown woman who wants to be thought of as sexy and desirable not an innocent little girl. Many celebrities will even go to the extent of making sex tapes or taking scandalous photos in order to claim their image as a sexy, desirable woman.
The fact that female celebrities are so concerned with having a sexy image proves Valenti’s point that female celebrities focus on sex whether concerning a virginal appearance or a sexy appearance, endorses the idea that a woman’s worth comes from her body.
Brenda,
DeleteThanks for you post! I am so with you, growing up we had these role models who claimed to be "pure" and "wholesome" but really they were just looked at as sex symbols. It is teaching young girls to be sexy but not sexual. The Disney Channel plays a huge role in how young women are supposed to act. We see stars like Hilary Duff and Ashley Tisdale start out as pure and innocent then become provocative young adults in order to prove that they are no longer little girls. It is sad that these types of child stars have resulted in making sex tapes and posing in sexy ways to change their "good-girl" image. I agree with you, all of this proves Valenti's point, that a woman's worth does in fact reflect in her body.
Hi Katie
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your post. I was actually watching a cnn newsreport the other day on Lolo Jones, a virgin olympic runner. Lolo Jones wrote on her twitter account that she was a virgin and got a huge backlash. Some people just didn't believe her. How could she be this fit and this pretty and not have sex? Granted, she did tell people that she was a virgin through twitter, probably not the best way to make a statement. When asked how people treated her because of her virginity, she said that people thought that it was sweet when she was younger. People still believe in this idea of a pure virgin. As she got older though, people started treating her differently. There must be something wrong with her if she isn't having sex at 30 right? Lolo Jone's story is a telling example of this double standard for women. Although I do believe that virginity is a good marketing strategy, I do think that we have to keep women like Lolo Jones in mind.
Being a virgin is probably appealing to parents. With all this sex crazed media, parents are probably falling into the "cult of virginity" and believing that being a virgin is being moral. However, I hope that parents can see that Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus might not be the best role models for their children. To me, their virgin image highlights that you do not have to be a virgin to be moral. I hope that parents can see this too.
I meant to add this clip of Lolo Jones interview for you:
Deletehttp://articles.latimes.com/2012/may/23/sports/la-sp-sn-lolo-jones-20120523
Hi Lauren!
DeleteThanks so much for sharing this clip! It seems like Lolo Jones is the right role model for young girls. Her reasons for staying a virgin seem to be for all of the right reasons; however why did she choose to announce this? I feel as though being a virgin or not being a virgin is a personal matter and shouldn't have to be in the media. It is interesting that when she was younger, people thought that the fact that she was a virgin was "cute." And now that she is older people just think its weird, especially men. It's funny because people probably don't believe her! She is beautiful and an olympian, how has she not had sex? I like how she said, "I have had plenty opportunities, and staying a virgin has been harder than training for the olympics."