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| Abarth ad still |
Do you feel lost thinking that I could be yours forever?
In yesterday's post,
Gender and Sexual Dynamics, I posted a video for the Fiat 500 Abarth. In the post I mentioned wishing I knew what the woman (played by Romanian actress/ model Catrinel Menghia) was saying, but felt afraid that by knowing, some of the tension and greatness of the ad would fade.
My curiosity got the better of me and I looked it up. Below is a translation.
What are you looking at? Uh!?
What are you looking at?! (slap)
Are you undressing me with your eyes?
Poor guy… you can’t help it?
Is your heart beating? Is your head spinning?
Do you feel lost thinking that I could be yours forever?
Those last three lines are brilliant, in my mind. They tap into the male's (at least this male's) psyche and think about fantasy/possibility of "forever". I need to remember though Carla's cautionary words she shared in her comment about the dangers of being a man's fantasy girl.
He doesn't have a clue who you really are. Indeed, you don't exist.
You are just the stand-in for a dream and had better stay that way. You
are so right. In reality, your competition is a car, a job, the guy's
mother or religion, whatever.
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| Abarth ad still |
After reflecting on this a bit, I have to think about fantasy. I believe fantasies can be healthy, beautiful, inspiring, and needed. Sometimes my fantasy narrative was the only thing that kept me going in the roughest parts of my life. What I worry about is when
fantasy becomes
fanaticism. It is funny how those two words are so similar in spelling.
Fanaticism - "... a belief or behavior involving uncritical zeal, particularly for an extreme religious or political cause or in some cases sports, or with an obsessive enthusiasm. Philosopher George Santayana defines fanaticism as "redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim"; according to Winston Churchill, "A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject". By either description the fanatic displays very strict standards and little tolerance for contrary ideas or opinions. In his book Crazy Talk, Stupid Talk, Neil Postman states that "the key to all fanatical beliefs is that they are self-confirming....(some beliefs are) fanatical not because they are 'false', but because they are expressed in such a way that they can never be shown to be false." - Wikipedia (bold emphasis mine)
When I read Carla's blog post that started all of this, she wrote of the sexual troll's in both real life and the pixel forest or internet. These guys only focus on the sex and not the person they are interacting with. I am wondering if part of their problem is that they have lost the ability to differentiate between
fan, fantasy, and
fanatic and are lost in their
uncritical zeal, strict standards, and little tolerance for contrary ideas.
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| Abarth ad still |
Ah, yes, Karl. You're right. The nude model's true enemy is the fan. Do you remember a suspense thriller titled "The Fan" some years ago? It's terrifying when you are put on a pedestal. It's only a matter of time before you fall short of the high standards of the fantasy and are despised. When the man seeks retribution, it can be terrifying.
ReplyDeleteThe "fan" I wrote about last summer kept coming back after he derided and "broke up" with me, wanting to start over. When I simply stopped responding, he sent messages filled with expletives. Andrew Lloyd Weber knows about this. There is a song in "Evita" he titles "High Flying Adored" and ends it with, "It's a long long way to fall."
There are two sides to the gender-based fantasy. The male seeks to profit in some way from the adoring relationship, but both he and the object of his affections are 99% guaranteed to suffer for it in the end.
I love it that you got a translation! Very insightful!
Karl, I think you're on a live line of thought here about the similarities between fantasy and fanaticism. The thought I'd like to toss out on that field has to do with how often fanaticism takes root in someone who is trying to (emotionally) prop themselves up on reflected glory, and how often the commercial dreamweaver's take advantage of this in the way they craft their ads. Once someone makes that mistake the establishment essentially owns title to their life.
ReplyDeleteOn a related sideline: gieeeyaawdam but Catrinel is gorgeous! Sorry Fiat, it's a cute little car and no doubt quick as a cat, but guys, you're reaching with this comparison. If you can't tell I'm an old Detroit gearhead, my idea of a machine to fit her is more along the lines of an early 70's Torino GT... long, like she is, almost as sleek, understated on the outside and hooking 400 horse hard to the ground when there's need, but never just to brag. Doesn't surprise me though that she's Romanian. The French are famed for their sensuality, but somehow I think the Romanian folk just watch them, and chuckle, and say "and when you've finished figuring that out we'll show you how the rest of it works..." For her sake I hope she's as wise as she is beautiful... so that beauty has a fighting chance of enduring for a long, long time.
Carla, I appreciate your view. I've never had a fan, or a fan like that. Your "fan" sounds like he is also a stalker. It makes me wonder if I've ever gone from fan to fanatic, influenced by fantasy, which then creeped out the receiver.
ReplyDeleteCD - It is interesting how big media and advertising are so good at pulling out our latent feelings to make us feel inadequate and needing whatever they are selling.
As of the nationality of vehicles, I love the diversity. Detroit big metal - I restored a '70 Ford F250 with a 390. I love the sound of the engine and roar from the dual exhausts. To me, one of my ultimate fantasy cars is a '67 or '68 Mustang convertible with a 390. With that said, those cars are beautiful, sensual sounding, and powerful, but lousy in most hard driving conditions beyond a straight line. Considering though that most of my driving is sedate and regular, that weakness may be a small issue.
I like some European cars, but mainly the Italian and British ones. I would love to have an Aston Martin V12 vantage convertible and a Ferrari 459. The Ferrari is the performer, and Aston Martin is the looker. All of these cars though are way beyond the cute little Abarth.
As for the beautiful Catrinel, I agree. I hope she enjoys the same success as my favorite Italian actress, Monica Bellucci. Monica is well into her 40s and enjoying great cinematic success.