“She’s Not Afraid” describes an outgoing, flirtatious girl who seems to not be afraid of anything and won’t let anything get in her way. She sneaks out, watches scary movies, lets herself go, and lights up the room when she walks in it. As you listen further into the song, they reveal that the guy tries to tell the girl that they like her, but she denies it and ignores his attraction toward her in fear, deep down of falling in love and getting her heart broken again. On the outside, the girl is confident, tough, unbothered, and doesn’t seem to care about her feelings making her seem very attractive, but on the inside, she is worried that she will get hurt again, is insecure, and tries to avoid being in a relationship again. The boy seems to play along with her tactics, wants to fall in love with her, but she continually shies away. He seems to be questioning why she won’t give in throughout the entire song and is very persistent by singing, “Maybe she’s just trying to test me, wanna see how hard I’m gonna work” puts light on the fact that he doesn’t understand why she feels this way. Additionally, the lyrics,
“She sneaks out in the middle of the night, yeah
Tight dress with the top cut low
She’s addicted to feeling of letting go, oh, ohoo, let it go”
supports the stereotypical female representation in TV, film, and music videos. Though there is no music video for this particular song, it is clear that she is wearing a dress to make her look thin while accentuating her figure. By doing this, she decides to follow the social norm of looking feminine, revealing, and most likely will play a passive role for a male gaze. This also indicates that she is potentially acting in a more sexually provocative manner than men, supporting content analysis.
In relation to Sex Role Theory, “She’s Not Afraid” reflects the fact that the typical female and male roles are very apparent in this song; the girl flirts her way into the guy’s mind and he fights to get her. Again, the lyrics, “Maybe she’s just trying to test me, wanna see how hard I’m gonna work,” state that the guy holds the competitive mindset in hopes of passing the test to win the girl’s utmost approval.
Shared by: Elyse Hornung
Image Credit: Smule