Vulgarity, Grotesque, and Carnivalesque

          Today we are going to discuss the concept of vulgarity, grotesque, and carnivalesque in popular culture. Mikhail Bakhtin was the philosopher who gave names to the concept of the tendency of dressing "excessively" in performances in great carnivals. Bakhtin coined the words carnivalesque and grotesque. In popular culture, carnivalesque refers to the body gesture and display that is "excessive" and beyond cultural and social acceptance in performance such as the explicit display of sexual organ and provocative poses. Grotesqueness refers to the kind of body that is known as "abnormal" and "disruptive" in performance such as an oversized head or an obese body. Vulgarity refers to the excessive gesture, language, and speech used to describe sexual organ and sexuality. Bakhtin suggests that carnival in itself and its vulgar, grotesque, and carnivalistic elements, through creating humor and chaos, offer an alternative or an escape from reality. Provocative images in popular culture provide laughter (either out of embarrassment or just pure laughter) and through laughter, opens the door for liberation and opposition for the daily lives, although it may take place only in a restricted period of time. Below I have shown some images as the example of vulgarity, grotesque, and carnivalesque in our modern-day popular culture.

          I have also chosen LMFAO's "Sexy and I Know It" video to demonstrate how vulgarity, grotesque, and carnivalesque in our modern-day popular culture has an undeniable impact on consumers. 

       
          Although an absolute contradiction of the high-art, this kind of music and way to present the maker’s message in the music is considered as the caliber of popular music. Up until today, it has 269,378,163 viewers and is one of the 50,000 or more Vevo certified music videos. Knowing that the goal of Vevo is to attract more global high-end advertisers and only music videos that have summed up at least 100 million views on Youtube are “honored” with the mark of being Vevo certified, the mark of being Vevo certified guarantees a great deal of revenue for the record producing labels and demonstrates the consumer’s affection for the music and the images shown in the video.
          Personally after watching this video (although it is not my first time), all I can say is that I feel sad  for the dancers and singers for needing to project their body in this way to make money and attract consumers, although they may indeed be enjoying it. In the music video, the duo is desperately trying to attract young women. Shown in lyrics like “I’m sexy and I know it”, ‘Girl look at that body… I work out” and “I got passion in my pants and I ain’t afraid to show it”, the duo, through the song, expresses how much they want to be in a heterosexual relationship with girls in the music video and their confidence in the way they make those girls crazy for them. Overtaken by their confidence and encouraged by their friends, the duo went battle with another gang of guys though “wiggling their male sexual organ”. Especially starting from 0:50 on to the end of the music video, showing provocative remarks on his male sexual organ in the lyrics, flirtatious and pornographic gestures and poses, bizarre and disruptive makeup and outfit, this video gives marks of carnivalesque and vulgarity.
           Wearing only colorful underwear, short hair, tattoo, and having a muscular body figure, the bodily gesture and posture of the duo is demonstrate what our culture perceives as sexy and bodily fit man. Teens who listen to this song, particularly young girls who are probably the intended major audience, are exposed to this idea of what sex is. On the other hand, young male teenagers who watch the music video receive this message of how the "passion in the pant" and the "wiggling" can help get them a pretty girlfriend. This video uses provocative image to sell adult sexuality and heterosexual relationship and educates them an unhealthy and discriminatory idea about homosexual relationship. From this point, we see how teens become vulnerable to the normative understanding of what masculine and feminine sexuality is through a popular music video like this and the impact of vulgarity and carnivalesque in popular culture on young consumers.