Peer Review for Sidra "If I were a boy"

By: Laura Altman
Sidra wrote her essay on the song “If I were a boy” by Beyonce Knowles. Her thesis on what this song meant was “, Beyonce sings about the empathy she would have if she were a man. Because she knows the feelings described well, from direct experience, she would be able to know those feelings as a man and then be a "better man" from it. She would inherently know how to treat a woman if she were a man because she would know how she wants men to treat her. With this empathy, she would be a better man.” This song deals with all form of rhetoric, this song has more pathos than anything. It allows the listeners and viewers to relate with what she is talking about. There are many relationships out there that are or have been in that same situation. The argument in the video is that men have a special privilege giving them the ability to so whatever and not worrying about their other half. Being able to make up excuses for the phone being off; or going out any time to have a beer. The song makes it sound like all men are like that and the things she talks about is true but for only a majority. Beyonce says how that if she were a boy, she would treat them like they the way they want them to be treated.

Sidra did a good job in using examples, for every statement made she had an example to back it up. With those examples she compared it with the song and video. That made it more clear for me to understand. Such as; “She describes about how she could go out and cheat and have her male friends stick up for her and deny all rumors. She was saying in her song that she would turn her phone off, so she couldn’t be reached by her loved one. Males usually use an excuse when a woman can’t get a hold of them by their cell, they say it’s broken or they didn’t have reception. Men have the privilege to be able to turn off their phone and not care about missing calls. Well, that's the privilege Beyonce is trying to suggest that men have. In reality, men are slaves to their cell phones as much as women are.”, “The end of the song is saying you’re pretty much just like every other guy and won’t understand any of what she has to say about being a better man. She knows what it’s like to be mistreated in a relationship and she puts everything into it while the guy, just treats her as if she didn’t even exist.”,” At the end though she switched back to a women and you could tell she wasn’t happy with the things were going and that he will never understand the things he has put her through.” I think that Sidra did a great job at pointing out the main statements in the lyrics and how it was represented in the video. The only thing I would add is how in the beginning of the video Beyonce and her boyfriend in the video go back and forwards listing words. Such as; intimacy, honesty, and commitment then together they say “you, me” I think those words are the key of any relationship and by them both saying “you, Me” means it takes both partners to contribute.

Sidra’s analysis examples were great. She had a good thesis and how she interpreted the lyrics to the video. By watching the video you see how she acted as if she were the man in the relationship she would completely dismiss her partner and do what she wanted will her partner was at home safe and sound worrying about her. Then in the end it switch roles and now she was the one that was at home the whole time while it was really him going out and turning off his phone. She was put her in the place of his every day activity and then stated that if she were really a boy she would treat them how they want to be treated. Sidra looked at reality and stated that “I think the song may be a little sexist, because not every guy is out there being unfaithful and mistreating females. There are a lot of females out there doing the same thing as this male in the song. It is not always the male doing wrong in the relationship. This song may be a little misleading, but it usually is the male that messes up. In general this song is very symbolic and represents a lot of relationships around the world. The song has potential by changes the ways of a male, maybe if they care about their significant other enough they will realize how much they are hurting them and stop, but by the end of the song she sings “but your just a boy” so she’s say that you won’t every understand how it feels to be treated like this day after day.”

The one thing from the essay and in the video/ lyrics is definitely how in the end Beyonce is answering to her boyfriend and then the rolls change and the boyfriend is the answering to her asking “Why are you so jealous? Its not like im sleeping with the girl” Beyonce then blames the fact that he doesn’t understand because he is “just a boy”. It stands out because when they switch rolls you realize she wasnt just imitating what she thinks a guy does she took on the roll of her boyfriend. Then when they switched he didnt care how she felt, and she blames it on him being a boy as if it is the typical guy and so she puts up with it and doesnt want to let go.