Through the song and video, Beyoncé wants to express to the audience the themes of feminism, racism, black empowerment, black identity and power. Through the song, she hopes to call on black women to unite in support of black men against racism, and to express her protest against the unfair treatment of people of color because of their color, race, etc.
This is similar to my initial reaction to the song, the video, and the lyrics. I could fully feel Beyoncé’s pride in being black repeatedly and strongly in the song. She is pleased and proud of her black skin color, heritage, and appearance of black features rather than inferior. In the song there are also lyrics that mean something like “I’m enjoying money, fame and status, and it’s the black people that you all look down on that have it all”. I really appreciate the boldness and confidence she shows in the song.
I did notice that Matsoukas featured mostly women of color, black women, and women with afros hair in the video, which fit the theme and lyrics of the song, and Matsoukas also devised a scene in which Beyoncé performed on top of a police car that was sinking into the flood waters of Hurricane Katrina. To highlight the realism and recreate the events of Hurricane Katrina, she used a Bolex camera with a grainy look and set the scene in Louisiana. The artificial lake where the scenes were shot was backed by a blue screen so that it would look like New Orleans. The scene was designed to insinuate that black people were not rescued and helped by the police in time to face the severe natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina, exposing the serious and deeply racist and disparate treatment. In addition to these, the video also features a black child dancing in front of a line of policemen and a wall with “Stop Shooting Us” written on it to call for resistance to police brutality against African-Americans.
I found examples of euphemisms and sarcasm, such as the lyrics comparing white people to “Albino alligators” who brutally and aggressively exploit, discriminate against and even kill people of color. Beyoncé also sings “I like my baby heir with baby hair and afros, I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils, Earned all this money but they never take the country out me”. Here is a strong expression of recognition and pride in her black identity, as well as Beyoncé’s strength and determination to advocate for feminism.
The song and video have caused controversy because some people misinterpreted the song’s original intent to protest police brutality and call to action to defend their rights as a provocative anti-police message.
3 thoughts on “Xinlin Luo Conversation 2”
I agree with your Rhetorical devices .I choose the same quotes to link to my rhetoric device but a little different for example I used the albino alligator quote as irony as it can also be interpreted as a insult in a happy way because of how rare albino alligators are, and I actually had the same reaction as you for euphemism because I agree that that quote demonstrated pride.
I agree, Beyonce is proud of her background, she mentions it in the video. Her dad is from Alabama and her mom is from Louisiana.
Regarding your mention of Beyoncé performing in a police car that was sinking into Katrina floodwaters, I think your explanation is perfect! In addition, Matsoukas also designed a scene as the hostess of Beyonce’s all-black family in a plantation house in the southern United States. A portrait of a dark-skinned woman almost blending into the background of the painting adorns the wall. It also satirizes the Southern era of slavery, as Beyonce sits gracefully twirling her cream parasol, dancing in rebellion, and shows that the precise memory of history has not been forgotten.Thank you very much!