Hottentot Venus and Beyonce Knowles

Hottentot Venus and Beyonce Knowles

Beyonce is an actress, dancer, singer and songwriter based in the United States of America. She is one of the most adorable celebrities who have succeeded in their careers. On the other hand, Hottentot Venus (Sarah Saartjie Baartman) became a celebrity in Europe after being exhibited as a caged animal (Crais and Scully, 102). She was originally from South Africa and had extra-ordinary curves on her body, which made her famous among people in Europe.

Race is a major theme that has affected the lives of both Hottentot and Beyonce. Hottentot’s journey to Europe was preceded by the belief that African women had a heightened primitive sexuality. Her body was different in many ways compared to the white females known in Europe. For Instance, she had an enlarged flap that covered her vagina. Moreover, her enlarged buttocks and breasts were also used by Europeans to underscore inferior sexual status of the black women.  Therefore, the perceived inferior black woman sexuality was used as a means to discriminate African women. Hottentot was displayed as a caged animal because she was racially unequal to white people and was viewed as a slave (Holmes, 69). The historical colonial times during which Hottentot lived were very restrictive and left her no choice, but to comply with the colonizers. Racial degradation was directed to her, but had little defense for her dignity. However, despite the colonial control, she stood her ground and refused to reveal her genitalia for observation. The humiliation did not end there because when she died of illness, her vagina and brain were cut and displayed in Paris Museum of Natural history together with her skeleton for people to view. Her remains stayed at the museum for many years until 2002 when Nelson Mandela requested the French Government for the remains. They were taken back to her country (South Africa) and give n a decent burial.

On the other hand, Beyonce lives in a post colonial period when slavery is a topic of the past and racial discrimination is minimal. However, sexual degradation of black women continues on a voluntary basis. Many black women fought hard against such degradation with the hope that it would end one day. They hoped that their children would be treated with respect with regard to their sexuality. Indeed such degradation by other races is over. However, Black women have voluntarily continued to degrade their sexuality by posing naked on stage in the name of performance. They expose their bodies to the public willingly in search of fame. They have overdone it so much that it has become like a fashion of the black woman, especially in the United States. Beyonce is one such black woman who despite being rich, she portrays her sexuality on stage in a demeaning manner to the black woman.

Both Hottentot and Beyonce belong to the female gender. Hottentot’s gender role was used to demonstrate females as underdogs who could be used as commercial objects to please people, especially men as was the case during slavery of African Americans (Hooks, 76). Similarly, Beyonce’s gender role demonstrates her as an object of male entertainment. However, she has tremendous influence even beyond racial lines, although the role is still overshadowed by degradation of black woman sexuality. Indeed racism has marred both Hottentot’s history and Beyonce’s life.

Hottentot had sexual appeals due to her curves that were rare in Europe. For instance, she had extra-ordinarily large breasts and protruding genitalia that were uncommon in Europe (Crais and Scully, 44). Her sexual appeal to her audience was not necessarily based on beauty, but rather on sexual organs that were unusual to European people. On the other hand, Beyonce’s sexual appeal is based on both beauty and attractive body curves. Moreover, her mode of dressing enhances her sexual appeal as it matches with her body figure. To crown her sexuality, Beyonce has a sexy voice and is able to dance alongside her singing. The combination of singing, dancing, clothing and beauty, differentiates Beyonce’s sexuality from that of Hottentot.

Cultural capital refers to skills, knowledge and advantages that people have that facilitates their acquisition of high status in the society (Field, 10). Beyonce has good education; her music has brought her fame, which has created a forum to interact with famous and powerful people in the world including President Obama. However, all the education and fails to earn her dignity because of her lack of respect for her sexuality on stage. On the other hand, Hottentot had little cultural capital except for her body curves and unusual features. Due to her lack of influence, she was ill-treated and did not have any social status. Her African cultural background influenced one of her sexual appeals-extended genitalia, which was unique to some Khoikhoi women (Qureshi, 20). Despite being discriminated, she had some cultural capital, which was never appreciated by the white men. This capital was evident when she constantly refused to remove her clothes so that people could view her genitalia.

Sarah Baartman travelled to London in pursuit of affluence. She was exhibited and entertained people with her exotic origin. Her physical differences left the spectators fascinated especially due to her projecting buttocks and large breasts. The person who brought her to London was prosecuted, but Baartman argued that she was not under restraint and that she was guaranteed half of the profit (Crais and Scully, 56). The ruling of the court gave her publicity that increased her popularity as an exhibit. She continued her exhibition in other parts of Britain and Ireland. Later, she was sold in France where she was exhibited. Baartman’s primary audiences were scientists. The American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer; is a very popular artist in the world today. She has released several albums, acted several movies, participated in various dances and won several awards. Beyonce’s primary audience is young people who enjoy her songs, movies and dancing styles (Qureshi, 102). Sarah Baartman’s appeal was her physical appearance. The audiences were attracted to her projected buttocks and large breast. She was bold to stay nude in front of the audience and cameras. She only wore a small-apron like garment that covered only her genitalia. This is what interested the artists who came up with her portrait. The scientists were also excited with her cooperation and courage. The fact that she was different from white women made the audience curious and eager to explore the difference. Similarly, Beyonce has had a positive appeal to her audience. One of her appeals is that she is a professional dancer. Her dancing styles and moves attract much audience globally. She is also a great artist who has composed, produced and released several albums. This has kept her audience intact and satisfied. Her body is a source of attraction to many.  She has a great physical appearance that appeals to the audience. It has been argued that her physical appearance resembles that of Sarah Baartman. Her buttocks provide inspiration to a group of scientists in Australian who have named a new species of insect that ahs a golden posterior (Holmes, 78). Beyonce’s dress code is next to nudity. Her thighs and stomach are exposed. She only covers part of her breasts, buttocks and genitalia. The physical appearance and excellence in her performance appeal most to the audience (Crais and Scully). Sarah Baartman was the most famous Khoikhoi woman exhibited in Europe. She featured in exhibitions as freak show under the name Hottentot Venus (Holmes, 2). Her curved body made her famous. This is because the white people had not seen such a geographical woman. The fact that she exposed almost the whole of her body attracted much audience. One the other hand, Beyonce has become famous due to her ever-growing career. She has continued to offer the audience with more and more music thus keeping them intact. Her body is a source of attraction and the most talked about thing in the whole world (Holmes, 22). Some of the audience purchase Beyonce’s albums to view her body when dancing. Her dress code is different from artists such as Erykah Badu who wore a very large head wraps. Badu’s body is never exposed to the audience (Qureshi, 45) unlike Beyonce’s.

It is true that Beyonce is rich (Masterson, 1). Perhaps other may argue that she has made enough and there is no need of exposing her body to earn money. They might be wrong for some reasons. Beyonce commodified her body to appeal to the audience and make sales from her numerous albums. However, this became her identity. This means that whenever people hear of Beyonce, they think of her body. Consequently, her body is like a brand or trademark. Therefore, she can’t forego it for the sake of decency. This is parallel to Sarah Baartman who used her body as a trade commodity. Baartman displayed her body for money whereas Beyonce acted nude to supplement her performance. With time, Beyonce’s dress code became an identity that proved hard to let go. The circumstances demands that she wear outfits close to nudity during performances and video recordings. This is the only way to keep her fans intact. Sarah Baartman depended on her body to make money. She appeared in several exhibitions to show her body structure including her genitalia.

Works Cited

Crais, C. Crais & Scully, Pamela. Sara Baartman & the Hottentot Venus: A Ghost Story & a Biography. New Jersey: Princeton University Press. 2009. Print.

Field, John. Social capital. London: Routledge. 2008. Print.

Hook, Bell. Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center. Pluto Press. 2000. Print.

Hooks, Bell. Talking Back: Thinking Feminist, Thinking Black. South End Press. 1989. Print.

Holmes, Rachel. The Hottentot Venus. Bloomsbury: Random House, 2006. Print.

Masterson, Lawrie. “Is Beyonce Beyond Her Best?” The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved on October 21, 2012 from: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/insider/is-beyonce-beyond-her-best/story-e6frewt9-1225697057494

Qureshi, Sadiah. Peoples on Parade: Exhibitions, Empire and Anthropology in Nineteenth-Century Britain. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2011. Print.

 

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