The first thing I remember thinking when I watched the episode of Drag Race, "Jocks in Frocks", was how beautiful the men were when they were dressed as women. Carmen Carrera, shown below:
is such a convincing woman that by looking only at this photo many would be surprised that she is actually physically a man. Another thing that I found really interesting was the transformation made by the jocks that were brought onto the show. At the beginning of the episode, most of the men seem uncomfortable as the attempt to become the 'sisters' of these Drag Queens. Yet, by the end of the episode most of the men have embraced their character and have found a way to learn from their experience and appreciate what the Drag Queens do and who they are.This episode of "Rupauls Drag Race" is related to Susan Sontag's argument of "Camp" really well as the essence of both is artifice and exaggeration. Even the first bullet point that Sontag makes about camp, that Camp is "not in terms of beauty, but in terms of artifice, of stylization" relates to the Drag Queens found on Rupauls show as they are often acknowledged more for their eccentric styles than for their natural beauty. Although the essence of the Drag Queens comes from within, there is a great amount of artifice used to enhance their look as well as personify their personalities through their feminine looks. One of the most applicable quotes from Sontag's arguments that correlate directly to the Drag Queens of "Rupauls Drag Race" is the idea that "camp is a mode of seduction--one which employs flamboyant mannerisms susceptible of a double interpretation; gestures full of duplicity, with a witty meaning for cognoscenti and another, more impersonal, for outsiders." Just as in Sontag's definition of Camp, Drag Queens possess this same flamboyant nature through which they express themselves and connect with others.
I totally agree that Carmen was gorgeous and maybe the most physically believable as a woman. Seriously, her body? It was ridiculous. It is very interesting to think about the different levels of femininity these men have. Although they all enjoy doing drag, there were some, like Alexis, who were slightly more athletic than the others. Some of the men dressed up as women, you could tell were in drag, but others I could have sworn were anatomically women. Even the athletes had a hidden drag queen inside of them, and some of them physically pulled it off. I think that the interesting thing about drag queens though, is that they are both male and female, and refer to themselves as such. They are comfortable in two skins, which I find remarkable and see their profession as more of a costume, or dress up, rather than a serious life choice. These guys can be pretty boys and hot girls at the same time, and I applaud them for it.
ReplyDeleteCarmen is my favorite too. She's on Facebook if you want to Friend her. She's married to a guy in NJ and has a step child.
ReplyDeleteI think it is incredible how powerful these transformations are!
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