It's the latest Internet sensation.
Britain's Got Talent -- the Limey version of American Idol -- has Sarah Boyle singing.
Jon Mark Beilue writes about it in his blog today. Women everywhere seem struck by the 47-year-old singing sensation.
I sent the YouTube clip (viewed by more than 12 million people) to a girlfriend of mine. She wasn't as appreciative of the acclaim being given Boyle as I was. Not because she doesn't think Boyle is great. She does.
But she thinks the reaction reflects a double-standard no one is acknowledging:
Here's her take on the reaction to Boyle's performance:
"Yeah, I saw this on TV, on You Tube, etc.... It kind of annoyed me. It was like — WOW! a woman who is not beautiful can sing! Stop the presses.
They were so condescending on the show I couldn’t stand it. These people need to get to the opera where they will discover that women who don’t look like models actually have talent.
"That video has been freakin’ me out since I saw it. Then I go to the gym today and the woman at the desk is showing the video to everyone and they’re all exclaiming and crying over it. I can’t believe it. It is so insulting!
The show was unbelievable — judges crying, people cheering like crazy. AN UGLY WOMAN CAN SING. STOP THE PRESSES!!
The blind can see. The lame can walk. The dowdy can sing. It’s a miracle!!!
If she had been young and pretty we wouldn’t have even known about her."
I don't think my friend is completely correct. If a young Boyle had been pretty with a voice like that, I believe she would have been discovered years ago. She wouldn't be unemployed and previously unknown at age 47, languishing on the shelf of life like a remarkable book deemed unworthy on the basis of its cover.
And that's the sad double-standard.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
The reason this is moving isn't because a homely woman can sing. It's the triumph of sincerity and a beautiful voice over cynicism. It's the breakthrough of something beautiful in a milieu that is almost always the venue of the superficial. It's the ascendancy of courage and passion over despair and loneliness.
ReplyDeleteOh yes-so well said by everyone, even the one who thought it condescension.You might be a touch "right" on that actually. I think the "ugly duckling" that dwells in all of us (from time to time) rejoices in the truth of swans in humble disguise. Lovely, gifted woman-I wish her ALL happiness!
ReplyDeleteIt's not just her looks, its her age. Where has she been all these years? If she were 21 years old, people would understand she was ripe for discovery.
ReplyDeleteBritain's Got Talent is the same as America's Got Talent, not American Ido.
ReplyDeleteWow... Toni. Thanks, because that distinction was really clouding the issue.
ReplyDelete