The film “Paris is Burning is an
interesting look into the world of Drag queen culture. As in any culture, the
queens in the sense of the drag queens, have a strict hierarchy. The mothers,
the newcomers, the dreamers, etc all have their place.
The film begins by describing “balls”. These pageants, are used to help the queens feel better about their social or economic status. Almost like a Cinderella story, but just like any fairy tail, there are always evil stepsisters, and witches to spoil a good time. With competition, comes jealousy, and reputation.
The film begins by describing “balls”. These pageants, are used to help the queens feel better about their social or economic status. Almost like a Cinderella story, but just like any fairy tail, there are always evil stepsisters, and witches to spoil a good time. With competition, comes jealousy, and reputation.
Just like kings and queens of the
past, drag queens don’t usually come from the most humble of backgrounds. The
style of the ‘now’ entails that they buy designer brands and labels to show
their status in society.
Opinions and fashions of the day
change though the generations; they do the same in the world of the drag queen.
Constructing one’s own costume and creative clothing with boas and loud, hand-sewn
outfits were popular in the 70’s. Later, designer brands and labels became the
popular attraction.
Power is very important in any monarchy. The struggle for power, the greed that comes along with it, are all factors in how a monarch deals with their position. King Louis the XIIII, and Napoleon wanted (and received) an insane amount of power, and dreamed of even more. Similarly, but perhaps not as realistic, so do the drag queens. A queen interviewed in the film said, “I wanna’ be a big star all over the world.” Although they may not be the monarch to a country, their ambitions are of similar
On another note --
A large part of the beginning of the film was used to explain the queen’s need for acceptance both in the gay and straight worlds. This is not only a problem for the queens but also for most people in the world today. The queens used the ‘Balls’ to have a time where they felt accepted and ‘normal’. Acceptance and groupings of common interests, heritage, etc, is ground deeply into human nature and has been around far longer than any monarch can be traced. From the beginning of human culture, people have been breaking into ‘family groups’ and other such sections. Even the political parties of today are far more diverse than they were 100 years ago. People long to find their niche in society, and sometimes that means creating a new group.
Power is very important in any monarchy. The struggle for power, the greed that comes along with it, are all factors in how a monarch deals with their position. King Louis the XIIII, and Napoleon wanted (and received) an insane amount of power, and dreamed of even more. Similarly, but perhaps not as realistic, so do the drag queens. A queen interviewed in the film said, “I wanna’ be a big star all over the world.” Although they may not be the monarch to a country, their ambitions are of similar
On another note --
A large part of the beginning of the film was used to explain the queen’s need for acceptance both in the gay and straight worlds. This is not only a problem for the queens but also for most people in the world today. The queens used the ‘Balls’ to have a time where they felt accepted and ‘normal’. Acceptance and groupings of common interests, heritage, etc, is ground deeply into human nature and has been around far longer than any monarch can be traced. From the beginning of human culture, people have been breaking into ‘family groups’ and other such sections. Even the political parties of today are far more diverse than they were 100 years ago. People long to find their niche in society, and sometimes that means creating a new group.
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