By Katerina Valouxi,
At first glance, Sabrina Carpenter is everything a straight man could ask for; short, blonde, blue eyes, pretty face, a petite but curvy body. Yet, while Sabrina’s image may fulfill the male fantasy, her musical image appears different. In her songs, she slanders men and condemns their foolish behaviors, while also being open about the expression of female sexuality. However, her new album cover could not be more obvious. Depicting her on all fours, her hair being dragged by a male figure, and one title; man’s best friend. In the current political climate, how far can art go without offending the people who are scared that we are taking steps backwards instead of forward?
All of this action happens against the backdrop of a “contemporary” conservatism that aims a return to traditional, past ideals. As a philosophy, conservatism emerged in the late 18th century, as a reaction to the innovative ideas of Enlightenment and the French Revolution. In that light, conservatism appeared to prioritized and sought stability, tradition and structures that help maintain continuity. As the 21st century embarked into a journey of rapid change and constant evolution, both social as well as economic and technological, conservatism served as an alleviating solution in an uncertain reality, being the easy way out of the drastic changes that the political scenes all over the world went through.
The most prominent and obvious example of conservatism in modern politics is Donald Trump’s presidency in the United States, blending traditional, conservative and nationalist policies regarding immigration, globalization and international trade deals. In Europe, leaders like Marine Le Pen in France, Matteo Salvini in Italy, and parties like the AFD in Germany represent right-wing populist movements who capitalize off concerns regarding immigration as well as cultural and economic uncertainty. Thus, the rise of nationalist, far-right ideologies in the global political landscape in the recent years raises concerns about its impact on human rights, culture and societal norms, as political leaders create spaces of archaic beliefs and polarizing views.
The descent towards conservatism and purity culture has become prominent with the rise of male incel communities and tradwives that have been trending in social media for a while now. Tradwives, short for “traditional wives”, started trending in 2020, during the first covid quarantine, when people stayed inside and occupied themselves with household chores even more than before. Tradwives do not like to define themselves as such, but they are easy to recognize by the similar features that they share. Gorgeous, elegant women, always put together, even when they cook or take care of their five plus children. Their appeal lies on the fact that they look flawless but also happy and content with their traditional, domestic lives.
Tradwives represent the stability of conservative structures, romanticizing a past of stay-at-home women whose unpaid labor is viewed not as an obligation, but a privilege. However, the Christian white women of the 1950’s would argue otherwise. The post-second world war period defined the image of the contemporary housewife, during a time that was shaped by government subsidies of housing and education as well as the social pressure to get women to be part of the work force. The women of the 1950’s also had no right to birth control, at a time when marital rape was not even constitutionally considered a crime. Hence, it is only rational that feminist texts of the time that were targeted towards white middle class women, including “The Feminine Mystique”, had a huge impact on second wave feminism.
The connection between conservatism, purity culture, and pop culture media like Sabrina Carpenter’s album cover may be closer than we think. Sabrina’s cover image has stirred up reactions online and still remains a heated topic that is up for debate. One can argue that the image is satirical. Maybe she tries to subvert stereotypes by playing with the roles of the dog and the master. However, one rule of a valid satirical piece is for the audience to acknowledge that it is satire, and this time that does not seem to be the case. In this political climate, there is nothing satirical or profound about an almost triggering image that alludes to pornographic depictions in which a woman is belittled and sexualized in a subservient way.
Tradwives with their purity culture and celebrity stars with their supposedly free choice of sexual liberation are two sides of the same coin; they both perform for the eyes of the patriarchal big brother. Another example is the actress Sydney Sweeney, a blonde, blue-eyed beauty who has already been established as a sex symbol after starring in “Euphoria” and “Anyone But You” as well as in the Rolling Stones’ “Angry” music video. However, Sweeney recently partnered with Dr. Squatch and released a limited edition soap, called “Sydney’s Bathwater Bliss”, which supposedly includes a touch of her actual bathwater. With this commercial choice she does not only establish herself as a sex symbol, but as a commodity, offering a part of hers in the most bizarre but also accessible way. At first it might not sound so harmful, but that is exactly because it is so accessible.
Of course, it is not the first time in pop culture that we see this kind of marketing. Lindsay Lohan’s GQ photoshoot in 2006 is another such example. In an attempt to save her image and trying to rebrand her as a “good girl gone wild”, GQ released a photoshoot in which Lohan appears lying in bed in sexual positions, cutting off pieces of magazines that contain paparazzi images of hers. However, in the year 2025, when governments with global influence limit human rights and online misogynist communities prevail, when OnlyFans models are praised because they are “sexually liberated”, when a famous woman that is often viewed as a powerful icon sells her own bath water, and another that was seen as a feminist figure releases album art that depicts her as a servant, where do we draw the line regarding the need to appeal? Sure, we can give Sabrina Carpenter the benefit of the doubt and wait until her album release to really understand if she aims to be satirical. Until then, her art is out in the world, and the audience has certainly one right over it; to judge it.
References
- The Enduring Power of Conservatism: A Global Resurgence in the 21st Century – Adhyayan Foundation for Policy and Research. Afpr.in. Available here
- Sundresses and Rugged Self-Sufficiency: “Tradwives” Tout a Conservative American Past … That Didn’t Exist. The Guardian. Available here
