Adventure #4: The Little Prince Personality

I have, what some may call, a Prince Personality. It seems to be genetic as the same characteristics can be found in two of my nieces (both are from different siblings of mine; one from a brother and the other from my sister) and a female cousin, though I have found it existent in some of my friends. A particular friend, a recurring companion of mine at my university, exhibits this personality to such a degree that at nineteen years old she reminds people of Giselle from Disney's Enchanted, which is helped by her strawberry blond hair.

Such personalities are more common among girls, but some boys do possess similar qualities. It is most easily seen in children, and some aspects of life perspective slough away with maturity, due to established social systems or other pursued interests, but most often the core of the personality stays with the person.

I would like to share a portrait of this personality, of which I will reference as a Prince, though a similar sketch can go for a Princess, as well. Much of what will be mentioned can be seen in other personalities to a degree but demonstrated will be the core values of this particular kind of personality. I mostly speak from my own experience.

Princes are most distinguishable by their soft- and tender-hearts. They are the most gentle and loving of beings. It is true that critical words can be damaging and hurtful to anyone. However, a harsh tone or cruel rejection can destroy a Prince. His sense of self and enthusiastic spirit for life die. He holds everything close to his heart and can eventually heal but slowly. It is common for him to connect with the vulnerable but leading character of a story, such as Winnie-the-Pooh or Cinderella. A Prince is easily reduced to tears, from fearful experiences but also from sympathy, gratitude, and love. He rarely allows others to see this, though, as he worries it would burden them.

A Prince will quietly maintain an air or impression of class and is naturally attracted to elegance. Often, he is seen as prim, especially in his desire to demonstrate immaculate presentation of self, quarters, and possessions. This sense will lead him to connect with classy figures, such as Audrey Hepburn or Prince William (son of Princess Diana and Prince Charles). Many general people are also attracted to these figures for their sense of class or from the general people's fascination with fame and royalty, but the Prince naturally views them as potential cohorts.

Obviously, the Prince is a dreamer personality. He is always in a dream, living in his own world. He is incredibly imaginitive. His dream, however, is not of selfishness. He does not live in his world for the sake of self-conceit. His dreams are filled with positive interactions with and from those he admires and loves. Some of his dreams are so close to his heart he would never dare share them with anyone. Most often these dreams are of his love interest.

When given opportunity to play companion to a love interest in the real world, he holds them at a high degree of importance and consideration, as also demonstrated in his long dreams dedicated to them. He feels for his love deeply and with complete commitment. Indeed, the mere presence of his love can be reward enough to please him. As a vulnerable/passive being, the Prince is not natural at forwardly establishing a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. However, if a commital agreement is not made, even by word of mouth, then the Prince may allow time and attention to other interests or callers, even if he has already spent time with one that particularly catches his interest. Rarely will he brave to be the one to dictate such a distinction, even if he desires it. For all he knows, such a relationship pronouncement may be seen as inconvenient in his love interest's view. He has a much easier time with the marriage proposal and wedding, as those are follow-up to what is already initiated.

When color coded, a Prince is a White personality, or peace-maker. He values positive, safe social interaction above all else. Never does he say or do something to purposely harm. At times, there is a slip of tongue or mistake of action, and when these are realized as a mistake, the Prince has not only offended the communicative receiver but also himself. Rudeness cannot be tolerated. To receive outside punishment at this time is torturous and emotionally dangerous for a Prince, due to his paining realization of his dreadful folly. He knows no enemy and is friend to all. To be made an enemy by returned harsh words, silent treatment, or other punishments is emotionally unbearable, as he will become disappointed in himself for the strong offense against his intense values.

This is not to say that the Prince does not speak or act boldly. When he feels something is to be said or done, he will do it but for the cause he holds as right. Likely, he is scared out of his pants to make a statement but still takes an uncomfortable courageous risk. He desires to teach or share and will not excuse himself, though he hopes his communicative recipient is open and truly receptive of his view, for to act in bold manner is only done out of greatest love for his recipient. A bold act is to open the Prince to a state of vulnerability, for if the recipient retaliates, he faces strong emotional disappointment, as previously discussed (especially since he holds everything he does and stands for close to his heart). He would not take such a risk were it not for the sake of love.

There is a point of contradiction for the Prince (as there is contradiction in every personality). Though he maintains a prim, classy, and mild countenance, his friendliness leads him to be a boisterous player of fun, which can become immensely silly. The Prince loves this side of himself but only allows it if he feels emotionally safe. That is not to say that if he does not show it to you he does not like you. He is incredibly intuitive and simply does not feel like such behavior may be right or proper for the situation or setting. He just may not be in the mood, though the Prince holds this part of himself in high importance. For some, this is the most common side of the Prince they see. Most of his antics are harmless poking of fun. He does allow room for some light "rudeness," or sarcasm, in his display of comedy, but he never means what he says (or else he would not say it, as it would offend him). It is intended without the slightest trickle of vehemence. He simply has an eye for wit, irony, and the naturally ridiculous. His intuition allows others to express the same sense of sarcasm, but he will become offended if he senses true rudeness and disrespect.

Another contradiction is that his occasional boldness can sometimes play with his humor when he views something as ridiculous, giving him a sassy quality, at times.

The Prince holds his values in high regard and places them close to his heart. Simply, he is a natural lover and wants to share that love.

Of course, there is much more to the personality, but these are some basic aspects of it.

Suggested reading:

The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupéry
which also can be found here:
http://www.angelfire.com/hi/littleprince/frames.html

Adventure #3: Arrested for BUI

I have always had a knack for blantantly stating things that others would consider inappropriate, particularly relating to bodily functions. I've tried to get better as I grow up, but still, I post things on Facebook or state things to my friends, like, "I had a bowel movement this morning." Honestly, what is there to be said to that? I wouldn't know what to say if I was in a sober mood and someone told me that (but when that has happened, I often celebrate with them). I find this to be known as Being Unnecessarily Inappropriate, or BUI.

Like diarrhea, there are typically no warning signs of BUI.  It just shoots out, often making a splattery mess, depending on your environment. Some people are more accepting of BUI, either casually overlooking it or lightly cleaning it up with a further joke. Others take the time to discipline or correct the offender in the same tone they would correct a puppy who had an accident on the carpet. Therefore, to scold in this manner serves no one, as the offender will simply continue thinking about the bodily functions of that puppy.

Much of the cause of BUI is honesty, though much of it can cross over to the realm of Too Much Information, or TMI. What most people overlook is that BUI can have its benefits. Recently, I told a friend that if she felt like she was becoming robotic in her acting audition, all she will have to do is fart. Farting is a very human behavior. It is a function of life and should therefore make her audition feel more natural and humanistic. It would be honest.

BUI seems to be a lifelong condition. However, there are different degrees in which one can be affected. Some are so far gone that possibility of normal interaction with others seems hopeless, but most are able to overcome and function more appropriately. No one is ever completely cured, though. After all, when you gotta go, you gotta go.

Adventure #2: Yo, Ga...Or How to See God (and Elves) and Be Happy

This semester I had a yoga class that was specialized for actors and covered Alexander Technique. At first, I didn't like the position of prana yama—I hated it, in fact. We started sitting in its position for five minutes, and as the semester progressed, we went for 10 and then 15 minutes. It was a lot like this:



ABSOLUTE TORTURE!!! I had so much trouble sitting still.  I knew that I had reached my limit (which eventually was at seven minutes) when my body would start to shake, particularly my arms. Nearly everytime I prana yama-ed I had the impulse to fall over and roll around on the floor, to which I occasionally complied when the time was up for the position. Further, we were instructed to breathe deep and concentrate our thoughts on breathing. This also proved troublesome as my mind worked as such:

"Think about breath. I am thiiiiiinking about my breath. Breathe deep....like they were teaching in Vocal Techniques. I wonder if this will also help with singing. I like where I sit in that class. I'm so glad there's an elevator in the Tanner Building. I nearly die having to climb up the stairs when leaving Richards. It's so gorgeous outside. BREATH. Yes, thinking about breath. Air coming in, and out. Trees make oxygen. I love trees. They're especially beautiful this time of year. I like their green!..." etc. etc.

Eventually, with lots of practice, I would get so focused on prana yama that Elves would come and do strange things to me while I was in concentration. I set up a camera to catch them in their mischief:

I didn't quite catch them amidst the action, but you can see what kind of silliness they do. I tried another day:

Failed, again, so I reset the camera for another attempt, but the little pests went even further:

Okay, so I never caught them to prove that it really was elves, but obviously something crazy was going on.

Anyway, as I've grown more accustomed to prana yama and other yoga stuff, I have noticed incredible BENEFITS from it. It's not so much an irritant to do, but it actually can be quite fun when I focus on the process, as prescribed by my professor (who was a hoot; he helped prana yama and yoga become more tolerable, especially as he would joke at the beginning of our prana yama time by flashing his hands out at the class, as if he were casting a spell, and proclaim, "Now, see God!!"; our final in the class was juggling two balls with one hand, as juggling also helps with focus and process-orientation).

General benefits that also have crossed over into my acting is a stronger focus on the present and enjoying the process of accomplishing what is happening rather than the finished product. The focus of yoga is spinal health, and from this, I've felt more stable and sure as a physical being. I feel my existence and feel more whole. I am deliberate. Another benefit is the release of physical/emotional tension (which are correlated; you feel emotions in your body, after all; why shouldn't they be connected?). From this, I am more physically free and openly expressive. A felt emotion is more commonly released through expression.

Overall, I feel I can say I've been much happier this semester, as I've learned something that helps me feel more peace and that releases emotional crap that I've gathered from the past or that I feel during my day and choose not to express, whether because it is not fitting the scenario or because I feel the results would be negative or unnecessary (or obviously rude—and therefore, unnecessary and negative). I'm not so much worried about what others think or how they may perceive me. I don't have those worries as much, anyway, as I get older, but even still, those worries have dropped even more. I don't need to worry about whether something is going to make me popular or well-liked or any of those sorts of things. My value can come from within myself, but of course, this is most often benefited from serving others but is not dependent on the praise of people.

I've even found a song I really like by Chantal Kreviazuk called "Weight of World." As I've come to understand its meaning, I've tried to live by it, and life is wonderful. I hope you enjoy it:

Robyn and Best Dance Recording

Robyn

Previously, I ran my picks for Grammy nominations, and delightfully, about half/two-thirds (who?knows) of my picks were actually nominated. Some artists were nominated in the category I put them in but for a different work. There were some happy surprises, though, like Sara Bareilles's nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "King of Anything," which I had hoped would be nominated for the category but had my doubts. She does an amazing job with it, but I do love the song itself, having retorted some of the lines myself before the song was ever released. I also had predicted Norah Jones's "Chasing Pirates" in the same category but forgot when I created my list.

Anyway, one of my favorite categories is Best Dance Recording. I love good electronic/dance music, and checking the nominees each year is always a fun way to find new stuff of quality. This year's nominees are:

Rocket

Goldfrapp

Alison Goldfrapp & Will Gregory, producers; Mark 'Spike' Stent, mixer

Track from: Head First

[Mute]

 

In For The Kill

La Roux

Elly Jackson & Ben Langmaid, producers; Serban Ghenea & John Hanes, mixers

Track from: La Roux

[Cherrytree/Interscope/Polydor/Big Life]

Dance In The Dark

Lady Gaga

Fernando Garibay & Lady Gaga, producers; Robert Orton, mixer

Track from: The Fame Monster

[Streamline/KonLive/Cherrytree/Interscope]

 

Only Girl (In The World)

Rihanna

Kuk Harrell, Stargate & Sandy Vee, producers; Phil Tan & Sandy Vee, mixers

[Island Def Jam]

 

Dancing On My Own

Robyn

Patrik Berger & Robyn, producers; Niklas Flyckt, mixer

Track from: Body Talk Pt. 1

[Konichiwa Records/Cherrytree/Interscope]

They are all phenomenal, of course, and I would urge anyone to experience them. There are even interesting tidbits on the nominations. All the tracks nominated are from female vocalists (a first for the category). Lady Gaga's "Dance in the Dark" was only released as a promo single, and Gaga is the only American nominated. Goldfrapp and La Roux are both female/male duos from the UK, while Robyn and Rihanna are soloists from Sweden and Barbados, respectively. Goldfrapp's Head First and La Roux's La Roux are nominated for Best Electronic/Dance Album, while Lady Gaga's The Fame Monster is nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album. Rihanna's "Only Girl (In The World)" is the most soulful we've heard her. "Rocket," "In For The Kill," and "Dancing On My Own" all play with a production sound reminiscent of the 80s.

If I were a member of the Academy, though, my vote for Best Dance Recording would be for Robyn's "Dancing On My Own." All the nominees sound amazing and perform in manners fitting their songs, but Robyn's performance is so honest to the point of vulnerability. Bravo! The listener can hear the internal tragedy conveyed through her voice. It is magical and does wonders for the track. Previously, I had investigated Robyn because of urgings from Facebook ads. I heard "Dancing on My Own" and "Hang With Me" and loved both of them, feeling like one of them will probably be nominated, but when it came time to pick my choice for nominations, I couldn't decide between the two and eventually forgot about it. I hadn't previously had time to really investigate much of her, though, due to schoolwork. Another track I really liked was "Handle Me." "Konichiwa Bitches" is an interesting listen with a hilariously crazy music video. Anyway, she's amazing and even had a stint of popularity in the US in the mid 90s with "Do You Know (What It Takes)" and "Show Me Love." Check her out!

Not "All the Lovers" Splurge in "Erotica:" Not Everyone is a Sex Maniac

JAN 31, 2011 UPDATE: At the beginning of this semester, my Advanced Writing professor emailed me and said she wanted to nominate my paper for a research paper contest that only accepted professor-nominated entries. So, I had to hop back onto working on this paper and made a few changes. The version below is the newly revised version.


For my Advanced Writing class, we had to write a research paper with an argument on an issue, so I chose to discuss Kylie Minogue and Madonna.  I'm posting this due to popular request.

To get into it, I will mainly be discussing Madonna's "Erotica" from Erotica and Kylie's "All the Lovers" from Aphrodite, so I would suggest checking the songs out below in order for you to get a feel of them before my analysis.  Generally, if you've never heard a song before, I would also impress you to listen to the song for a play before watching the music video, so you can get your own image and feel for it before you view someone else's translation.  I suggest the same for these two songs.  I also feel I must WARN that both videos tend to be quite SEXUAL and SENSUAL in nature.

Kylie with her OBE

Australian pop princess Kylie Minogue is crowned nothing short of royalty, especially considering her 2008 receptions of an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) (United Kingdom) and an Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (France) for her services in music.  Such honors place her among the elite of the celebrity community, where she is never free from critical comparison to pop music superstar Madonna.  However, Madonna and Kylie’s artistic messages are very different from each other.  Madonna feeds her audience the theme that power can be gained by sexuality, while Kylie explores themes of love and vulnerability.

Charlene from Neighbours

Initially, Kylie stood free of being critically assimilate to Madonna as she gained popularity with her character Charlene Mitchell on the Australian television soap opera Neighbours.  This led to her eventual break into pop music in the late 1980s (“Kylie Attends”) with the single “I Should Be So Lucky,” whose accompanying video helped her adopt a girl-next-door image, eventually known as CuteKylie (Sutherland and Ellis 58).  She immediately skyrocketed to international success and still remains strong, as her latest album release in July 2010, Aphrodite, reached number one on the U.K. album chart (“Featured”) and number two on the Australian chart (“Kylie Minogue”).

Her Madonna comparison began with the release of her Rhythm of Love album in 1990, which introduced the world to the phase known as SexKylie.  At the time, Kylie “wanted to develop, to experience different things and express [her]self beyond primary colours […] [She] was twenty-one and growing up.  [Her] own sexual revolution” (Baker and Minogue 41).  The sexual direction she took was mostly sparked from her recent relationship with INXS singer Michael Hutchence who taught her the power of sexuality (Baker and Minogue 50).  Regardless of her own ambitions, this change in persona from CuteKylie and shared similarities of her Rhythm of Love Tour to Madonna’s Blond Ambition World Tour led many to regard Kylie as a “Madonna wannabe” (Baker and Minogue 85, 86; Baron 52), a term often used in negative dismissal of an artist’s credibility and originality.

For a modern example, Lady Gaga is frequently coined the same, especially for her “Alejandro” music video’s use of Catholic symbols (“Lady”), which Madonna already exhausted in her “Like A Prayer” music video, on her Confessions Tour, and on several other occasions (“Religious”).  In cultural critic Camille Paglia’s article “Lady Gaga and the Death of Sex” for The Sunday Times, she continues referencing the “Alejandro” music video, citing “Gaga has borrowed heavily from Madonna.”  The article trashes Gaga, strongly posing her as a “copycat” and failing to mention anything that makes Gaga valuable as a standalone artist.  Paglia’s criticism limits her perception of Gaga’s individual potential.  In this instance, a cultural critic places Gaga under Madonna’s shadow, just as so many critics have done with Kylie.  In fact, in research for this paper, no scholarly article could be found about Kylie without comparison to Madonna.  To cling to such arguments that certain pop artists are merely borrowing from Madonna narrows one’s ability to see what those artists can contribute themselves, and they potentially miss the artists’ own valuable offerings.

Blond Ambition World Tour, 1990

Rhythm of Love Tour, 1991

Kylie’s ex-producer, Pete Waterman, though, admitted in an interview with The Independent, “She was setting her sights on becoming the new Prince or Madonna.  What I found amazing was that she was outselling Madonna four to one, but still wanted to be her” (Lister).  However, Kylie herself confessed, “Madonna has definitely influenced me […] generally rather than specifically” (Baron 47).

In support of her comments, this paper proposes that despite similarities in artistic pattern between Kylie and Madonna, the two are separate in the meaning and purpose of their work and Kylie is credible as an artist in her own right with artistic value that extends beyond the limiting label of a wannabe.  Madonna presents the use of sexuality to gain power until her theme’s peak with the release of Erotica in 1992, while Kylie’s musical artistry stands apart in its mission to gain love and express vulnerability until her artistic message’s pending peak with Aphrodite.  The lead singles from both albums, “Erotica” from Erotica and “All the Lovers” from Aphrodite, will be analyzed in support of these themes.

To separate the women further, both artists’ imitation of societal expectations of gender roles, each fulfilling the opposite of the other, reflects their overarching themes and the polarity between them, as supported by a music video study by Jennifer Hurley.  While a doctoral student at Deankin University in Geelong, Australia, Hurley worked with Media Studies students of secondary education and reported the students’ description “of Madonna as 'masculine', when [asked] to name pop stars who they thought were either feminine or masculine. [They] referred to Madonna's 'attitude' […] —being assertive, active, and significant, as opposed to being submissive, passive, and insignificant— […] and muscular body as distinguishing her from other 'feminine' performers such as Kylie Minogue” (330, 331).  These impressions joyride the themes of Madonna’s power and Kylie’s love.  Naturally, the masculine individual is associated with power while the feminine with vulnerability.

With power as Madonna’s super-objective in her artistry, she uses tactics of sexuality in pursuit of her objective.  She has played with gender roles on many occasions in order to deconstruct sexual boundaries, as shown in her music videos for “Express Yourself” (1989), where she dresses in a pin-striped suit and performs crotch grabs, and for “Justify My Love” (1990), in which a woman wears a pen-drawn mustache and Madonna kisses another woman (Hallstein 125).  She does not limit the expression of one’s sexuality and demonstrates the power one has to express that sexuality.  Lyrically, both songs emphasize a woman on a pedestal, informing her lover to express himself and to justify a reason for her to love him and have sex with him.  In this, there is a power play that is less commonly given to the female, where she holds sexual expression hostage if the man does not reach her expectations.

Her climb with pushing these social boundaries peaked [in 1992] when she praised a variety of forms of sexuality with the release of her soft porn coffee table book Sex and the accompanying album Erotica.  The album’s explicit songs and video promotion thoroughly demonstrate power through sexuality.

The opening and title track and first single establishes Madonna as a leader of sexuality, declaring to the listener, “I’ll be your mistress tonight,” and promising, “I’ll hit you with a truck/ I’ll give you love/ I’ll teach you how to… aahh.”  Madonna is forward with her declaration of power as a well-versed and well-experienced guide on the listener’s journey of sexual discovery, even posing, “If I’m in charge/ And I treat you like a child/ Will you let yourself go wild […] / Give it up, do as I say.”  She places herself in a position of power above the listener, putting her audience in a schoolroom to be educated “like a child.”  She is the teacher with authority of the classroom.  The track’s music video expands her power beyond educator to that of disciplinarian, since she sports a dominatrix outfit and samples BDSM (Bondage Dominance Submission Masochism) in many scenes.

Madonna continues her power play with gender roles in the video.  In some scenes, she dresses as a feminine figure in an elegant, glittery gown and straps a group of nearly naked men together, bowed down on all fours facing the direction away from her.  The image is reminiscent of sled dogs or horses pulling a carriage.  In her fancy dress suggesting her womanhood, she bears a whip, declaring her as the leader and driver of her team.  She once again takes the dominant role, subjecting the male figure to her rule.  The men are her slaves, and she is their master.  They are under her command to serve her fantasies.  She maintains power over them, so they will be at her disposition for her sexual desires.

Naturally, controversy surrounded the explicit material of Sex and Erotica. In reflection of her build to Erotica and its peak of her theme, in 1995 Madonna released the single “Human Nature” from her following album Bedtime Stories (1994).  The song serves as an unapologetic and direct response to those who were critical of her effort with Erotica (Rooksby 45).  She picks up the controversial train labeled “sex” she has been driving and sarcastically approaches her criticizers with backing vocal statements as, “Oops I didn’t know I couldn’t talk about sex/ (I musta been crazy) […] / Oops I didn’t know I couldn’t talk about you.”  She once again hangs sex over her audience’s head, stating they are involved in the topic, because “it’s human nature (I’m just like you).”  The video reprises her role as a dominatrix in acts of BDSM, retaining her as the hand of power through the song’s conversation, repeating, “I’m not sorry,” and finally ending confrontational and cold, retorting, “Absolutely no regrets.”



Madonna steps down from her peak, remaining a power figure and convinced that what she did was right.  Madonna knows what she has done and is perfectly aware of the message of power-gain through sex that she is sharing through her art.

Such heavy material contrasts to that of her “wannabe” counterpart, Kylie, who follows a theme of love throughout her career and explores vulnerability as a by-product of love.  Now, in order for there to be a peak in Kylie’s theme, there must be a climb to that summit, just as there was with Madonna’s theme.

"I Should Be So Lucky," 1988

From even her first single “I Should Be So Lucky,” Kylie explored the theme of love, as she sang of dreaming that her hidden feelings for her love interest would be returned.  Also, despite her SexKylie phase at the time, the song “Shocked” still encompassed the manifestation of romantic feelings, being “shocked by the power of love.”  Her music also delves into vulnerability with the single “What Do I Have To Do?”  She is having trouble convincing her lover she loves him.  He does not take any of her confessions seriously, and she questions, “How can I prove that I really love you?”  This, naturally, places her in a vulnerable and frustrating position of unrequited love.  However, the song’s musical styling is one of angst, suggesting Kylie desires to prove her love to only relieve herself, not necessarily to benefit her partner.

A deeper meaning of love comes from the album Kylie Minogue in 1994 with the single “Confide in Me,” whose message simply lies in its title.  The song offers a more mature move for Kylie, dealing with an honest concern for another individual, whether lover or not.  She is open to vulnerability, induced by empathy, as suggested by the lines, “We all get hurt by love/ And we all have our cross to bear/ But in the name of understanding now/ Our problems should be shared.”  She is matured in matters socially and emotionally to include others and to consider their feelings.  At the same time, she enters vulnerability by opening up and allowing herself to care enough to be the wailing wall of another individual and to love them, even if they are a stranger, “Should I offer some assistance?/ Should it matter who you are?”

Fever (U.S. Edition)

Kylie further explored her overarching theme through her subsequent work, particularly her 2000 single “Please Stay,” whose yearning vulnerability is basic to its title.  A heightened landmark toward her peak came with her 2001 album Fever.  Its singles “Can’t Get You Out of My Head,” “In Your Eyes,” “Love at First Sight,” and “Come Into My World,” as well as tracks “Fragile,” “Love Affair,” and “Your Love” and the Australian bonus track “Tightrope,” help constitute her theme of love and vulnerability.

Of that set list, highest potency towards her message is “Fragile,” which is yet another title that forwardly suggests its lyrics’ journey.  It is the epiphany of vulnerability towards a lover in its description of potential wounds.  She is so consumed with admiration and feelings towards her love interest that she claims disappointment would be her emotional undoing, “Scared of what’s to come […] / I get butterflies/ Water in my eyes/ When I think of you/ I could break in two/ ‘Cause I’m fragile when I hear your name/ Fragile when you call/ This could be the nearest thing to love.”  Yet, she also does not claim that it is love.  She has more maturity to gain on the subject but, eventually, she reaches her summit.

In July 2010, Kylie promoted her status to Goddess of Love with the release of the album Aphrodite, whose overall concepts enrapture the idea of love and vulnerability.  A glimpse at the track list, with songs like “Cupid Boy,” “Everything is Beautiful,” and “Looking for an Angel,” is simple enough to explore its concepts of love, beauty, and the celestial, as these are recurrent associations with the goddess Aphrodite.

“All the Lovers,” Aphrodite’s opening track and lead single, portrays the epitome of Kylie’s theme of love and vulnerability, much like what “Erotica” did for Madonna’s power through sexuality.  “All the Lovers” sums up the ideals of finally finding a true, honest love after so much search, “All the lovers/ That have gone before/ They don’t compare/ To you.”  From the moment the song begins, Kylie reveals how strongly she feels for her lover, “Dance, it’s all I wanna do so won’t you dance,/ I’m standing here with you why won’t you move/ I’ll get inside your groove ‘cos I’m on fire […] / It hurts./ When you get too close but baby it hurts.”  She loves him enough to dedicate a dance through life devoted to him.  She opens up with complete honesty of her greatest desire, because she is on fire with emotion to the point that it is overwhelming, due to her vulnerability towards her lover.

The second verse encourages her lover to be open to the sensations he is feeling, coaxing, “Feel […] there’s so much here to feel […]/ Breathe […]/You’ll be next to me it’s all you need […]/ I’ll take you higher.”  Kylie’s performance is sweet and caring.  She is humbly begging, pleading for her benefit as well as his.  She has come a long way from her self-interested concern in “What Do I Have To Do?” and has graduated to becoming a true lover.  She finds the vulnerability as not just an ache or longing needing cure, but she is reaching something beyond herself, something only attainable with the companionship of another.

As the persona of Kylie understands this, she is qualified as the heavenly Aphrodite in the music video.  The video begins on a skyscraper-lined city street with a flash mob stripping to white undergarments—the white, their purity in love; the revealed undergarments, the stripping of layers down to the core of an individual, where they are most vulnerable.  Physically, this is also a vulnerable position, as there is nothing to cover and protect the body from harm if it is attacked, especially the vitals within the body core.  Also, it reveals parts of the body that one may not be fully comfortable with exposing, since it is rarely seen to be judged and accepted by others.

Regardless, the mob is completely open to one another, participating in passionate kissing with other members and signifying their role as the lovers.  When the chorus is sung for the first time, Kylie is lifted by the mob and surrounded by ascending doves, an animal sacred to Aphrodite (Berens 61).  She is caressed and touched like a holy Messiah, an Aphrodite, their deliverer of love.  Kylie rules as love, and the manner of loving expression from her followers shares the deep purpose that is more meaningful than the bump-and-grind presented by Madonna, the leader of lust.  As the song progresses, more and more lovers hear the song of love and join the mob, until the group is nearly as tall as the skyscrapers.

Another motif throughout the video is a QR Code, a barcode-like device defined as a “two-dimensional matri[x] that represent[s] text,” even “a phone number, a URL, a paragraph or any other type of textual information” (“QR”).  It is seen on a coffee cup, a milk bottle, the pavement, and banners.  It is not forwardly evidenced what text is encoded in the QR Code, but it is designed the same every time it is seen, therefore, stating a repetitive message.  Nonetheless, the presence of the QR Code represents the immaterial of love.

Love is not something tangible, but it exists, even on a coded frequency that is felt and registered within oneself.  Its availability rests in a lover’s own desire and willingness to seek, recognize, and handle its communication.  Just as anyone trying to receive the message from a QR Code must have the proper technological equipment to obtain the encoded message, the lover must be prepared and have the tools ready to access those sought messages coded in the emotional language of love, so they can recognize those communicated emotions and know how to handle them.

The location of the QR Codes demonstrates the universality of Kylie’s love message across different demographic groups, stating that love is everywhere, among everyone.  The Codes on the coffee cup and the milk bottle represent love crossing the boundaries of race—the coffee distinguishes those of colored skin, while the milk denotes those of pale skin.  The cup and the bottle fall and spill their liquids to show the release and freedom of seeking love beyond the container of one’s own race.

The Code on the pavement is accompanied by falling white marshmallows that symbolize the gay male community.  Marshmallows are sweet and flavorful, just as the male homosexual personality is commonly connoted as being gentle and flamboyant.  Furthermore, the marshmallows in the video all share the same appearance, and the clip following is of a male with an earring.  The next scene is an opening briefcase with white paper falling out and a QR Code on a banner in the background.  These images are representative of those of lesbian interests, since individuals aligning in that manner tend to follow more butch and masculine paths as symbolized by the defined edges of the briefcase and the papers.  Also, the follow-up character shown is female to denote a female tendency.  The white of the marshmallows and paper qualify the homosexual love as pure, as well.  The banner is seen in later scenes as a reminder that love language is communicated through emotion and is manifested in the lovers’ physical expressions the audience views.  However, the marshmallows and sheets of paper can also symbolize different body sizes—fluffy like a marshmallow or thin like paper—and qualifies everyone to love, no matter how they are physically shaped.

Returning to Kylie in the video, her role as Aphrodite is not the only deity present.  Her efforts are supported by the appearance of the elephant-headed Indian god Ganesha, represented in the video by a gigantic inflatable white elephant.  Ganesha is “worshipped as a guardian god, bringer of luck, and regularly invoked as the ‘Remover of Obstacles’” (Coomaraswamy 30).  His presence is made during the second verse, as Kylie encourages her gathering lover followers to sense their feelings and recognize the emotions and stakes as “going higher, higher, higher.”  She calls on Ganesha’s assistance as a guardian and “Remover of Obstacles” to help her lovers remove their barriers and walls they have placed around their hearts.  At the same time, Ganesha hovers above as a guardian to protect from potential harm that may come when Kylie’s lovers open their hearts to the vulnerabilities she beckons them to give one another.  Later in the video, when the mob of lovers has grown in height, Ganesha floats a ways off from Kylie, providing a protectant journey to new lovers on their way to join the group.

With the protection of Ganesha’s vigilance and of being lowered into the mob of lovers, Kylie is safe during the song’s bridge to softly express her vulnerability through her vocal performance, which is helped by dropping the pounding bass line and synthesizers and only backing her with a gentle piano and warm strings.  She once again pleads her desire to “dance […]/ Even if it throws you to the fire.”  She longs to live harmoniously with her lover and wants him to open himself to a vulnerable position, though he is fearful of it.  As she comes out of the bridge, the music builds again until it reaches its climax with its bass line and a soaring synthesizer melody.  At this segment of the video, a white horse, often a symbol of spiritual illumination (Tresidder 241), runs through the street of kissing lovers.  Kylie’s lover, along with her followers, released inhibitions and entered the vulnerable state Kylie required, earning the spiritual illumination that “love is really good.”  During the second half of the last chorus, the soaring synthesizer melody plays in the background to show the lovers’ spiritual illumination and adherence to the lines, “Don’t be frightened/ Just give me a little bit more.”  With her mission accomplished, Kylie ends the video as Aphrodite, releasing a white dove into flight, releasing love into the world.

Kylie has come to understand what it means to love and how to be open and share vulnerability with her lover.  She has finished her climb to her peak.  She is Aphrodite.

Kylie completes her theme of love and vulnerability, just as Madonna completed her theme of power through sexuality.  Their artistry may have crossed paths on occasion, but their meanings and intentions for their audiences’ experience are totally different and unique to themselves.  Both patterned themes that led to eventual peaks, but both women stand alone in their artistry, neither requiring a pigeonhole label of a “wannabe,” limiting the perception of their artistic value by critics, whether cultural or scholarly.  Kylie possesses profound artistic integrity, deserving individual praise for her work without the mention or backup of Madonna and her works.

Works Cited

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