Backstreet "Boys" To Begin Wearing Dresses: Move Seen As In Keeping With Vaguely Feminine Mystique
by staff reporter Holden Caufield
There is a certain strain of Freudian thought that posits females as desirous of a partner who, while male, is almost a reflection of themselves in terms of femininity and gentleness. It's almost as though what it might be if they could animate one of their childhood dolls. Thus might we begin to explain the Backstreet Boys inexplicable rise to fame. How else to explain the amazing dichotomy of opinion on them? Girls of all ages - whether admitting it or not - find them appealing and yearn to get near the softly manicured hands and faces of the B-Boys, while most American males despise them for their complete lack of all marked masculinity.
"When we were setting up the group, we were trying to go for the 'approachable and sensitive, yet still-technically-male' look," explains Backstreet's manager, John Roach. "I think it's entirely possible to be a man and still be sensitive in an open way," says heartthrob and Backstreet Boy Nick Carter.
"No, it's not," answers all of manhood.
This being said, the group's movement away from male culture to disturbing femininity seemed to be completed this week when they announced that they would begin wearing dresses. Why the sudden change? Nick "Cutie" Carter explained that the idea came when he was playing some touch football with the other members of the group for a Sears ad. "So this guys sees me running all like a girl and everything and throwing the ball really girl-like and he yells, 'Hey, buddy, why don't you just wear a dress next time?' I thought, "Hey, maybe I will wear a dress next time." The rest of the group, never far behind Nick's embarrassing behavior, thought the idea was a hit. "So, next day we go to the women's store where we bought our make-up and bought some dresses. I got a nice house dress," said a non-Nick Backstreet Boy whose name went in one ear and out the other. For their upcoming video for their new single which they did not write, "My Love is Deep," the group will be clothed entirely in women's make-up and shoes, not to mention the dresses they are now wearing on a daily basis.
"Guys, you're starting to creep people out now," their manager was heard saying.
Look for girls of all ages to find this all very appealing.
So, this leads us to the big question: Why is it that the current cultural landscapes calls for men to display their emotions on their sleeve and in cliched song lyrics, sung badly, while simultaneously rejecting traditional male attributes like stoicism and courage?
We have the Backstreet Boys to thank for that one.