Unit Three Post - What Cultural References Define a Generation: Phoebe Robinson and the Gay Rat Wedding

Since reading selections from Phoebe Robinson's book You Can't Touch My Hair, I have been pondering cultural references, in literature and in life. To me, one of the most defining characteristics of Robinson's writing is her ability to stay both relevant and entertaining by tying in references to pop culture. I love pop culture. And academic writing. And where the two collide. So Robinson's style gets a big yes from me. 

Recently, a controversial episode of the children's television show Arthur has become a big deal on the internet (or as the kids call it, gone viral). This episode, entitled "Mr. Ratburn and the Special Someone", was taken off the air in Alabama following conservative pressure. You can read about it all here. Fast forward a few days, and the Gay Rat Wedding (hereafter referred to as the GRW) went viral, resulting in memes, jokes, and political satire. This morning, after falling asleep last night pondering the writing of Phoebe Robinson, I saw the following tweet.

You're probably wondering what Phoebe Robinson has to do with the GRW, so I'll get to it. I have to say, I'm really liking the acronym "the GRW." Is the GRW the new GOP? 

So after reading Phoebe Robinson and her discussion of the pop culture and media references that framed her youth, I started asking myself which pop culture references defined my youth. What about me right now? Me in ten years? What if I had to pick a few media references to define "my generation"? I'm sorry but I thought about the GRW. It reeks of everything that our society is preoccupied with at the moment: archaic laws and the separation of church and state issue, meme culture, our fascination with television and reality and the line separating them... 

In light of my thoughts on Phoebe Robinson and the GRW, I thought I would try to come up with a few pop culture references that I believe are in some way definitive of my youth. 

When I think about my childhood, I remember my fascination with certain very specific, weird, things and people. One of those things/people was Hillary Duff, known to me back then as Lizzie McGuire. My cousin and I both had underwear with Lizzie McGuire on them.  In retrospect this is slightly odd, maybe more so than having, for example, Spider-Man, on your underwear. Mine looked like this. 

Also, if you were considering googling "Lizzie McGuire underwear", don't do it. Just don't. 

We all wanted to be Lizzie McGuire. She had a cartoon version of herself, which helped her express her frustration when things went wrong with her love interest or her grades. She also had an alter ego who was an amazing singer, AND she got to travel to Italy. So basically, I was crazy jealous. If I had to bury a time capsule from the early 2000s, it would definitely have cartoon character underwear in it. 

On the other hand, sometimes what can define a generation (or a childhood) isn't something that everyone necessarily likes, like Lizzie McGuire and her printed underwear, but something that people just constantly reference. When I think of something that people constantly referenced when I was a kid, it would have to be Janet Jackson's boob. 

Okay, that came off wrong. Just to be clear, I think Janet Jackson is super cool. And so are boobs. And at this point in my life, I don't consider either one shocking enough to be something I think about a lot. However, looking back, the wardrobe malfunction that occurred during the halftime show of Super Bowl XXXVIII was mentioned constantly when I was younger. If your shirt was looking a little low-cut, someone would be like "You don't wanna pull a Janet, do you?" 

Here are Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake rocking out, pre wardrobe malfunction. 

As a young person, I didn't really understand the significance of the malfunction. I only talked about it because adults talked about it, and kids copy adults. Fifteen years later, I think that our preoccupation with the wardrobe malfunction incident says a lot about how our society treats women - as a child I thought literally the worst thing you could do was show your breast on live television. 

As an adult, I'm not in favor of or against breasts on television. I'm just not thinking it's a huge deal. Hopefully, we have gotten past this preoccupation, at least a bit. Also, don't google "Janet Jackson boob" either (although you might get some delightful google suggestions for "Stretch jeans for all sizes", "Gorgeous Purple Nail Polish Shades" and "Delicious fruit snacks here").  

Lastly, as a visual person, I think that a big part of my childhood was the cringey fashion. I'm talking ~ Frosty Eyeshadow ~

 ~ Butterfly Clips ~

 

And ~ Dresses ~ Over ~ Jeans ~

And also, remember when Kim Kardashian wore mom dresses and was a rep for Charmin?

Those bears are downright terrifying. 

To be clear, this is a random sampling of the cultural moments that defined my childhood. So, don't be too worried about me. And please, drop me a line about the cultural moments that were defining for you. Here's to telling our kids about the GRW.