It seems there are a few things that I have overlooked when I endorsed this video in an earlier article.
My friend explained to me that the kids who attend orthodox private schools are leading very sheltered lives and that they aren't plagued with the type of social ills that other kids currently deal with.
She also reminded me that it is against Jewish law for women to sing in groups of less than 4.
I believe this video is very funny and clever, however I think it is important to try to represent all points of view when possible, and according to my friend, this particular music video is offensive to orthodox Jews for multiple reasons.
People have rights to be creative, and to make their own statements as they see fit. And I still do think this is a clever video, and I still think it is funny.
When I was watching and analyzing this video, I felt that there was a credible statement being made that orthodox Jewish girls are undergoing the same type of social ills that the rest of society suffers from. Apparently according to my friend, this is simply not the case.
According to my friend, orthodox Jews are currently expending great efforts to protect their children from the problems that are endemic to modern teenagers.
This being the case, this video is not as socially relevant as I once believed.
When I endorsed the video, I perceived it as the story of two mischievous teenage girls who are immersed in the sleaze and filth of modern LA teenage society. I believed this video was a sweet story of two high spirited teenage girls who thumb their nose at the drugs, and petty rivalries, and the social ills they are forced to face every day at school, and on their way to and from school.
The final ending of this story is that the two sisters, who are each others best and possibly only friends, finally quit playing pirate/rap stars and go home to their decent family sabbath.
I asked myself how I would feel if I had two teenage daughters who acted and behaved the way that Miriam and Shoshana did. With the exception of locking a rival girl into the trunk of a car, and the mild profanity, I would not be ashamed to have 2 daughters that dealt with modern pressures the way these two characters did.
There lies the conflict. According to my friend, orthodox Jewish girls don't have to deal with the pressures of drugs, bulimia, or most other social ills that mainstream teenagers do.
This makes the Miriam and Shoshana video a harmless, albeit greatly exaggerated portrayal of modern teenage orthodox social condition.
As this video portrays orthodox teenage girls as having a small drug culture, and a moderate amount of social ills, I believe this video is moderately slanderous to the image of orthodox Jews.
As this video portrays its "protagonists" as orthodox Jewish girls who while high spirited, end up shunning drugs, shunning bulimia, and going home to their functional nuclear family sabbath, I feel this video flatters orthodox Jewry.
So this video is a clever and funny video, it is entertaining, however some of its entertainment value comes at the expense of breaking Jewish laws, and unfairly lampooning Orthodox teenage female Jewry.
I must somewhat decrease the level of my endorsement for this video, although I do feel it is still highly creative and funny.
I searched youtube.com for some clips of modern orthodox teens going about their lives and activities, but I didn't find any.
I wanted to post something very positive about orthodox Jewish teens that might offset the exaggerated portrayal of this cohort group by Miriam and Shoshana.
I didn't find anything to fit this description. However I did find a very positive video about the Maccabi Teen Olympic games that gives a very realistic view of young Jewish Athletes from America and the Globe. This video doesn't state their individual branch of Judaism. I believe the reader can make those judgements for himself if they are important at all.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=BwITd5-qy4E
Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007
A friend of mine has been reading the Miriam and Shoshana articles, and she is the lady who is mentioned above. Here is what she said in a recent email:
Okay so I read the article and here is what I think. First off let me explain that women cant sing in groups of I cant remember not four I think its more like ten to be honest and secondly I'm not sure where bulimia comes in to play. Jewish women I'm sure suffer from that as religion has nothing to do with body image or wanting to be thin so bad to attract the opposite sex. What I meant by Jews not singing or participating in activities like rap songs on the web is because orthodox Jews are supposed to separate themselves as to not give the outside world reason to criticize them. We are not supposed to give the "goyim" ammunition to use us as a scapegoat. "Oh look at those Jews, they make fun of women with bulimia and they make fun of people on drugs and the language they use is atrocious. We should all hate them." Judaism is about modesty and when you sing and use profanity it is not modest. This is not my opinion of the video though this is just what I think orthodox jews are thinking about it and that's why they have voiced an opinion of disapproval.
As this is an evolving essay, I thought I might also post an interesting article from The JewishJournal.com. You can see what they had to say about Miriam and Shoshana by clicking the next link.
http://www.jewishjournal.com/home/searchview.php?id=18479
The final position of Mikes Vacation on the Miriam and Shoshana music video is that while this video has elements that border on bad taste, and aren't appropriate for children, it ultimately does more good than harm in that it make people feel good by laughing and smiling.
Most American humor draws its punchline from "taboo" elements of our society. There is usually something abraisive, abusive, or sexual behind most jokes in America. The question is whether or not these "off color" jokes are motivated by hatred, or simple ribald style poor taste.
In the case of Miriam and Shoshana, the orthodox Jews are taking their turn in being the "butt" of the Joke, but on the same hand they are not hatefully portrayed, and their collective reputations are not being so damaged that intelligent person will not understand that this video is only intended to give a few laughs, not document the actual real world condition of an entire people.
This video makes people laugh and feel good, and that is solid gold these days, we as Americans need a few laughs, and as long as no one is credibly damaged, or hurt, then why not let the Orthdox take their turns every once in a while?
The rest of America and the world is all essentially accessible and agreeable to being made fun of once in a while, so why not the Orthodox Jews?
No comments:
Post a Comment