Another week, another celebrity gets naked on Instagram. It's becoming as predictable as rain in British summer. So what's your view? Are naked selfies a feminist statement? Female empowerment or objectification? Or are they simply human nature 21st century-style? Here, our transgender columnist, Juno Dawson, and comedian Sara Pascoe join the debate…
JUNO DAWSON: "There's a sackload of gender politics to unpack around this form of expression. It's more complicated than an open-and-shut case of 'slut' vs 'prude'."
The easiest way to 'break the internet' in 2016 is to post a nude selfie. In recent months, Instagram pouting has evolved into something decidedly less 'arty' - women just standing in their birthday suits, with or without a modesty box. I don't know about you, but I was almost scared to form an opinion: if you find it tasteless, you're accused of 'slut-shaming', if you say 'you go girl', you're supporting the exploitation of women's bodies.
Which side are you on? Nudes: objectification or empowerment? Is posting a naked selfie really a feminist act?
I've been dwelling on this for a while now, and when you boil this argument down to its (bare) bones, a woman choosing to display her body online is, ultimately, a feminist act. Bear with me. Using feminist poet (and friend to Beyoncé) Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's definition of feminism as the 'political, social and economic equality of the sexes', and seeing social equality as allowing women to exploit the media for financial gain, we have a feminist act. There are plenty of men with their tops off on Instagram. Insta-star Brock O Hurn has made a career out of it.
So, if we assume that celebs such as Kim Kardashian and Emily Ratajkowski aren't being coerced into taking nude selfies, then they are in control of both their bodies and their financial destiny. Indeed the #FreeTheNipple campaign has sought to remove a sexist double standard whereby men's nipples are allowed on social media channels, but those of women are considered inappropriate.
But this is where the 'oh feminism means women can do whatever they want' argument starts to wane. The reason some websites don't allow female nudity is because of the sexualisation of women's bodies. Whether we like it or not, some men are aroused by images of naked women. No matter the intention or motivation of the model - social, political or economic - an observer can interpret that picture however they choose.
And yes, they can choose to masturbate over it. Without your consent.
This takes us from sexualisation into objectification. Porn culture can lead some men (and indeed some women) into thinking sex is consumerist - something you can buy, delve into and enjoy whenever the hell you like. So Nudey Pic Lady may well be thinking 'Yas! My nipples are destroying the patriarchy!' but Mr Pornface is just thinking, 'Might knock one out in the lav at lunchtime'. Who really has the power here?
I don't see naked selfies empowering women to negotiate pay rises or flexible working hours.KeepInlineId¬4gpanDisplayStyle¬1]
<p class=p1>Arguably Kim K and co are so rich and powerful, they
are steering the discourse around their brand and reaping the
financial rewards. But while sending one message overtly ('I am in
control of my body'), what message are they sending to their twelve
year-old female fans? I'd argue the message is, 'the best way for a
woman to earn serious cash is with her body'. Clearly this is not a
healthy message. We are looking at the most famous,
'entrepreneurial' women in the world, and they are naked.
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>So while feminism, at its very core, is about choice
- I don't see how nude selfies can be said to be 'empowering'. I
don't see them empowering girls to enrol in science or technology
courses. I don't see them empowering girls to leave toxic
relationships. I don't see them empowering women to negotiate pay
rises or flexible working hours. While a woman can choose to do
whatever the hell she wants with her image - both in real life and
online - we must remember we have no choice in how we are
perceived.
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>Onlookers can take those pictures and do whatever
they want with them. And that's not very empowering at all. [link url=https://twitter.com/junodawson]@junodawson[/link]
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>
<h3 class=subheading>SARA PASCOE: If Instagram nudity is a
celebration of health and physique and the sheer joy of looking,
let's give it a round of applause while we nakedly headstand.[/h3]
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>I found out about this 'naked instagram craze' from
Glamour magazine itself. I'm not on Instagram because my phone is
an eight year old Nokia that can't take photographs and also cos if
I wanna see what my friends are eating for dinner I'll hang out
with them and watch it go down first hand.
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>I'd thought that was what instagram was for, you
know, celebrity product placement and my friend's eating habits,
but now I hear about all this nudey-ness and I had to go see.
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>I love women's bodies as much as the next man, I'd go
so far as to say there's little better to look at. My head is
turned far more often by a striking female figure than by a male
one. The boys just don't have the hip to waist ratio to get my eyes
interested.
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>[ImageLibrary1630829/AnyI understand that women looking at women is not necessarily sexual (though of course sometimes it is), and it does not stem from the jealous rivalry that modern culture leads us to believe. Female bodies have been honed by millions of years of evolution to display our health and fertility to anyone looking - and so we have learned to look, we have learned to judge and we have learned to care. Like a peacock's tail enabling him to attract a mate, so women have adornments on their bodies that have been selected through thousands of generations to make us sexier.
Our body shape indicates our level of oestrogen, breast pertness is a reliable indicator of age (and thus fertility) and lustrous hair demonstrates an absence of parasites (sexy!) This explains why women with little or no clothes on are so arresting and attention grabbing - there lies the secret behind all advertising ever. It is not sex that sells but attractive women's bodies. They make us think of sex. That's nature.
Female bodies have been honed by millions of years of evolution to display our health and fertility - and so we have learned to look.KeepInlineId¬19qag9DisplayStyle¬1]
<p class=p1>With all this in mind, I have mixed feelings about
nudity on instagram. On the one hand I think, 'HOORAY! Respect and
admiration and voyeuristic enjoyment towards the female form.' Art
has always depicted and depended on women's bodies, it's just that
now galleries exist more often on Instagram than in major cities.
If the nudity on instagram is a celebration of health and physique
and the sheer joy of looking without a simmering intention to
manipulate women into insecure consumers, let's all give it a round
of applause while we nakedly headstand.
<p class=p1>
<p class=p1>[ImageLibrary1630832/AnyMy other hand though, the loud and sceptical one, wants you to absorb the importance of this sentence: "Instagram removes content that shows female nipples, genitals and close-ups of fully nude buttocks." The nakedness on instagram does not reflect reality.
It is often photoshopped and filtered, or at the very least, flattering lit. Women's bodies are sometimes given the Barbie doll treatment, depicted without pores and hairs, stretch marks, moles and cellulite. The NSFW bits are shadowed or shaded out. So while we can't help our adoration of a beautiful woman, on Instagram as elsewhere, we must remember to remind ourselves that a 2-dimensional digitally enhanced moment is not something us spotted, bumpy, hairy real-life humans should be hoping to attain. @sarapascoe
Animal: The Autobiography of a Female Body by Sara Pascoe is out now. Sara is on tour with Animal, May 6 to July 2, 2016. For details visit, sarapascoe.com/gigs.
https://twitter.com/sarapascoe
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