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01/10/2007: "Shedding The Cocoon: Symbolism In The Butterfly Videos"
When Mariah Carey divorced Tommy Mottola in 1997, she felt free to do a lot of things that she couldn't do when married. Mariah has said she felt stifled in her marriage with Tommy, and her 1997 album Butterfly chronicles a lot of what Mariah was going through at the time. Not coincidentally, the videos from the album seem to be her most symbolic. Mariah has denied some of the connections to her personal life and validated others, so let me state for the record that a lot of what you are about to read is pure speculation.
"Honey" - The video that introduced pop culture to a post-divorce Mariah was "Honey." Mariah has said that the concept of the "Honey" video was influenced by the 'Bond Girls' from James Bond movies, and she has said the video was just an excuse for her to wear different outfits. A lot of people thought there was more meaning in the video than Mariah let on. In the opening of the video, Mariah is being held captive by an Italian mobster, perhaps a reference to her Italian ex-husband Tommy who likened himself to 'The Don'. In the video Mariah escapes her captors, jumps off a balcony into a pool, and emerges in a bikini. The bikini in the pool scene is modeled after Bond girl Honey Ryder, who emerged from the ocean in a similar biniki in Dr. No. Bond girls are typically thought of as 'eye candy' in the James Bond movies, and they are usually victim roles. In the "Honey" video, however, Mariah escapes from her captors and rides away from them on a jet ski. Mariah was assumed to be a victim in her marriage, so just as Mariah broke free from Tommy, perhaps she was breaking free from the Bond girl stereotype. One of Mariah's captors seemed similar to Tommy, and he was holding Mariah captive in a mansion. Tommy and Mariah were living in a mansion in Bedford up until their separation, and Mariah has dubbed the mansion 'Sing Sing' because it felt like a prison to her. Or, as Mariah's co-producer Walter Afanasieff told Entertainment Weekly, "Everything in the video is 'Fuck you, Tommy.'"
"Butterfly" - The next video to be released was "Butterfly." Mariah has stated that the opening scene of the video was inspired by the Tennessee Williams play Baby Doll. That play centers on a young woman who is married to a businessman who wants a more intimate relationship with her than she wants. The play is basically about her boredom and exploitation by a seductive Italian and her abusive older husband. It isn't hard to see the parallels to Tommy's restrictions on Mariah and her subsequent relationship with Derek Jeter. The older man peeps at her in the opening of the play (like in the opening of the video), and is frustrated that he cannot see more of her. Tommy spied on Mariah in general, and perhaps wanted more from her physically (Mariah has said there wasn't a lot of sex in the marriage). In Baby Doll, Archie's failures as a businessman add to his failure to get intimate with Baby Doll. In a story reported by Vanity Fair and other sources, Mariah taunted Tommy after the 1996 Grammys by criticizing his lacking enough power to get her a Grammy. Baby Doll is a woman-child, which Mariah actually describes herself as in the Butterfly song "Close My Eyes" (and has a song titled "Babydoll" on that album). The "Butterfly" video shows Mariah visiting different parts of the house during the day as the male figure is presumably off at work. The one thing that seems to bring her happiness is a horse, which she ultimately sets free. In the Here Is Mariah Carey TV special, Mariah rides horses at the home she shared with Tommy. Perhaps letting the horse go in "Butterfly" was symbolic of letting Tommy go. In the play, Baby Doll's husband also talks about the position he holds in the town and how many people are on his side. That would be a parallel for Tommy holding the position of the head of Mariah's record label. Mariah told MTV that the scene in the video where she cuts her hands on a barbed wire fence came from a dream she had. In dreams, barbed wire is known to represent difficulty in breaking through and feeling trapped in a relationship. That clearly parallels Mariah's relationship with Tommy.
"My All" - Another video with clear symbols is "My All." Some of the images were modeled after Boticelli's The Birth Of Venus. Venus was the god of love and beauty, and some say she sprang from the sea and floated to the shore in a shell. Venus also represents the feminine, and she shines brightly as a star sometimes, but also diminishes (like feminine power). Vulcan worked to make objects that pleased Venus, but she was unable to meet his need for monogamy. Venus was torn between her husband Vulcan (Tommy), the god of destructive fire, and her true love Mars (Derek), the god of spring/fertility. She has been waiting to speak, and perhaps the man in the lighthouse represents Mars. The video could also tie into the Sirens of mythology, who were seductive and pulled mariners to their islands with their singing and eventually killed them.
"The Roof" - The video for "The Roof" found Mariah reflecting back on a rooftop party from 1983. She drives around in a limo reflecting back to a night from her past, perhaps remembering the last time she felt really free as a person. Mariah has talked about being eternally stuck in 8th grade, and 1983 wouldn't have been too far removed from that time. The most symbolic moment of the video comes toward the end when Mariah rises up through the sunroof in the limo. As Slant magazine details, "When Mariah rises through the limo's sunroof to relish the warm November rain, she's not drunk on the bubbly but on the memory of a fleeting moment of liberation." That's a fitting image to use as an end to this blog; Mariah is both liberated and vulnerable.
When Mariah Carey divorced Tommy Mottola in 1997, she felt free to do a lot of things that she couldn't do when married. Mariah has said she felt stifled in her marriage with Tommy, and her 1997 album Butterfly chronicles a lot of what Mariah was going through at the time. Not coincidentally, the videos from the album seem to be her most symbolic. Mariah has denied some of the connections to her personal life and validated others, so let me state for the record that a lot of what you are about to read is pure speculation.
"Honey" - The video that introduced pop culture to a post-divorce Mariah was "Honey." Mariah has said that the concept of the "Honey" video was influenced by the 'Bond Girls' from James Bond movies, and she has said the video was just an excuse for her to wear different outfits. A lot of people thought there was more meaning in the video than Mariah let on. In the opening of the video, Mariah is being held captive by an Italian mobster, perhaps a reference to her Italian ex-husband Tommy who likened himself to 'The Don'. In the video Mariah escapes her captors, jumps off a balcony into a pool, and emerges in a bikini. The bikini in the pool scene is modeled after Bond girl Honey Ryder, who emerged from the ocean in a similar biniki in Dr. No. Bond girls are typically thought of as 'eye candy' in the James Bond movies, and they are usually victim roles. In the "Honey" video, however, Mariah escapes from her captors and rides away from them on a jet ski. Mariah was assumed to be a victim in her marriage, so just as Mariah broke free from Tommy, perhaps she was breaking free from the Bond girl stereotype. One of Mariah's captors seemed similar to Tommy, and he was holding Mariah captive in a mansion. Tommy and Mariah were living in a mansion in Bedford up until their separation, and Mariah has dubbed the mansion 'Sing Sing' because it felt like a prison to her. Or, as Mariah's co-producer Walter Afanasieff told Entertainment Weekly, "Everything in the video is 'Fuck you, Tommy.'"
"Butterfly" - The next video to be released was "Butterfly." Mariah has stated that the opening scene of the video was inspired by the Tennessee Williams play Baby Doll. That play centers on a young woman who is married to a businessman who wants a more intimate relationship with her than she wants. The play is basically about her boredom and exploitation by a seductive Italian and her abusive older husband. It isn't hard to see the parallels to Tommy's restrictions on Mariah and her subsequent relationship with Derek Jeter. The older man peeps at her in the opening of the play (like in the opening of the video), and is frustrated that he cannot see more of her. Tommy spied on Mariah in general, and perhaps wanted more from her physically (Mariah has said there wasn't a lot of sex in the marriage). In Baby Doll, Archie's failures as a businessman add to his failure to get intimate with Baby Doll. In a story reported by Vanity Fair and other sources, Mariah taunted Tommy after the 1996 Grammys by criticizing his lacking enough power to get her a Grammy. Baby Doll is a woman-child, which Mariah actually describes herself as in the Butterfly song "Close My Eyes" (and has a song titled "Babydoll" on that album). The "Butterfly" video shows Mariah visiting different parts of the house during the day as the male figure is presumably off at work. The one thing that seems to bring her happiness is a horse, which she ultimately sets free. In the Here Is Mariah Carey TV special, Mariah rides horses at the home she shared with Tommy. Perhaps letting the horse go in "Butterfly" was symbolic of letting Tommy go. In the play, Baby Doll's husband also talks about the position he holds in the town and how many people are on his side. That would be a parallel for Tommy holding the position of the head of Mariah's record label. Mariah told MTV that the scene in the video where she cuts her hands on a barbed wire fence came from a dream she had. In dreams, barbed wire is known to represent difficulty in breaking through and feeling trapped in a relationship. That clearly parallels Mariah's relationship with Tommy.
"My All" - Another video with clear symbols is "My All." Some of the images were modeled after Boticelli's The Birth Of Venus. Venus was the god of love and beauty, and some say she sprang from the sea and floated to the shore in a shell. Venus also represents the feminine, and she shines brightly as a star sometimes, but also diminishes (like feminine power). Vulcan worked to make objects that pleased Venus, but she was unable to meet his need for monogamy. Venus was torn between her husband Vulcan (Tommy), the god of destructive fire, and her true love Mars (Derek), the god of spring/fertility. She has been waiting to speak, and perhaps the man in the lighthouse represents Mars. The video could also tie into the Sirens of mythology, who were seductive and pulled mariners to their islands with their singing and eventually killed them.
"The Roof" - The video for "The Roof" found Mariah reflecting back on a rooftop party from 1983. She drives around in a limo reflecting back to a night from her past, perhaps remembering the last time she felt really free as a person. Mariah has talked about being eternally stuck in 8th grade, and 1983 wouldn't have been too far removed from that time. The most symbolic moment of the video comes toward the end when Mariah rises up through the sunroof in the limo. As Slant magazine details, "When Mariah rises through the limo's sunroof to relish the warm November rain, she's not drunk on the bubbly but on the memory of a fleeting moment of liberation." That's a fitting image to use as an end to this blog; Mariah is both liberated and vulnerable.