The Virgin/Whore Trap: How the Media Took Down Britney Spears

From the moment Britney Spears entered the public eye, she was forced into an impossible role – to be both the girl next door and a sex symbol at the same time. She was expected to be innocent, but sexy. Wholesome, but desirable to men. Then she was punished for failing to do the impossible.  

 

This is called the virgin/whore dichotomy, also known as the Madonna-Whore Complex. The concept places women into two extreme moral categories—the pure and chaste woman suitable for marriage and motherhood, and the sexy and promiscuous seductress. Once a woman is labeled, she and everything she does are seen through that perspective.

 

The media targeted Britney Spears from a young age and ate it up when she failed to meet their hypocritical expectations. In the late 90s and early 2000s, Britney was young and pretty. Yet, her image was engineered to be attractive and sexy. She wore crop tops and danced confidently while being marketed as “America’s sweetheart.”

 

The media was strangely obsessed with Britney’s virginity. She was frequently asked about her sexual status by adults on national television. Her perceived virginity was framed as a type of moral achievement, and her discomfort with her sex life being scrutinized by grown adults was uncomfortable to watch.

 

It was a no-win scenario for Britney. If she leaned into her innocence, she was mocked for being “fake.” If she leaned into sexual confidence as a young woman finding her way in the world, she was labeled as irresponsible and reckless. The media created this struggle, and people loved watching the spectacle for its entertainment value.

 

Enter Justin Timberlake, Britney’s boyfriend of almost three years. When the two broke up in 2002, the imbalanced and unstable Britney narrative was cemented. His post-breakup pain was treated as authentic and heartbreaking, while hers was treated as guilt. Hegemonic messages gave him the privilege of complexity, while her image was reduced to that of a harlot. Britney later revealed in her memoir that during their relationship, she became pregnant and chose to terminate the pregnancy because Justin did not want a baby. He later wrote the song, “Cry Me a River,” about their breakup. Yet during this period, Justin was viewed by the public as wounded and heartbroken, while Britney was viewed as mentally unstable. The double standard is not only sexist, but it’s morally disgusting.

The long-term consequences of the media’s public shaming, and later a controlling conservatorship put in place by her father, stripped away Britney’s autonomy. The conservatorship was disguised as a way of “protecting” her. But from what? She lost control over her own body, her own money, and her own labor. She was forced to have an IUD placed to prevent pregnancy. She was forced to work when she didn’t want to. Yet she is still criticized to this day for being “unstable” and strange. I would challenge anyone to navigate the waters through which Britney was forced to swim and make it to the other side unscathed.

Britney didn’t fail. We failed her by demanding entertainment from a media and culture full of contradictions. Be sexy, but not too sexual. Be honest, but don’t be messy. Be confident, but don’t come off as threatening.

The world demanded the impossible from Britney and called her crazy when she couldn’t handle the pressure. They watched her break and called it entertainment. Now that’s the real tragedy.

 

The #FreeBritney movement was an essential case study of third-wave feminism at work, highlighting the misogyny of mediocre men controlling her body, money, and reproductive choices. On November 12, 2021, Britney’s 13-year-long conservatorship ended, freeing Britney from her father’s control. She regained agency over her choices and power for the first time at 39 years old. However, it didn’t end the media’s misogynistic scrutiny of her behavior.

 

Because Britney has been a public figure from such a young age (she appeared on Star Search at age 10), do you think it’s fair for the media to criticize her and her choices as they do? Or do you think they’ve gone too far? Where does this balance lie?