Gigantic, Sound-Producing, Prosthetic Penis

I often joke that my primary objective when teaching is to either shock students or make them cry. I'm finding that, especially in a big lecture context like my Introduction to Music class, it's not really a joke. Sounding absurd is extremely useful.

Today I wanted to talk about Prince's Super Bowl halftime performance--you know, the one where his silhouette makes his guitar look like a big phallus that he's stroking. Before class, I was watching a clip of the performance when a colleague, watching over my shoulder, said dramatically, "androgyny is power." Androgyny isn't exactly what's going on in that performance, but I liked the way he said it.

"Miami Rain" via virtualmatter
Uploaded by virtualmatter

So, I started the class with the statement, "androgyny is power . . . if you happen to have a gigantic, sound-producing, prosthetic penis." Boom. My job was pretty much over.

The students, who, given that it was a rainy, icky Friday, probably really wished they were someplace else, were suddenly right there with me. I felt under-prepared, but it didn't matter. The students were REALLY paying attention and I was able to let them direct my discussion in a way that is often difficult in a class that size.

Plus, as I had framed the previous two lectures with consideration of Justin Timberlake, I knew they were just waiting for me to mention wardrobe malfunctions, so I could save it for a lull. As soon as it seemed like I might be losing them: "If Janet Jackson can whip out her real boob, why can't Prince whip out his symbolic penis?"