Love the Way You Lie by Eminem and Rihanna Essay - 1

Love the Way You Lie by Eminem and Rihanna - Essay Example Rihanna chants the chorus with words such as â€Å"†¦ That’s all right because I like the way it hurts.† The video is particularly useful since Eminem’s and Rihanna’s past lives were characterized by violence or abuse (Fallon 4). Eminem is fond of singing a lot about violence while Rihanna was once abused by Chris Brown. When one examines the video very carefully, it appears like it glorifies domestic violence. Eminem sings If she ever tries to fucking leave me again, I'm a tie her to the bed and set this house on fire.† Eminem appears to promote violence against woman since he is set to punish her partner if she decides to dump him (Enck and Blake 621). On the other hand, Rihanna sings â€Å"Just gonna stand there and watch me burn. But that's all right because I like the way it hurts.† Rihanna suggests that she may tolerate domestic violence if it is directed at her again (Cundiff 22). The song explains a superficial narrative of a violent relationship without an analysis. In the video, Eminem raps aggressively in the background insinuating that he is the male character that appears in the video. The video indicates how a love so violent at one time could quickly go wrong after some time. On the other hand, Rihanna sings as if she is the female character that appears in the video. Rihanna’s line, â€Å"I love the way you lie†, insinuates that the female character gets pleasure in being let down and mistreated. Both Eminem and Rihanna play their part in the video in front of a house that is burning. The flames may be representing anger, desire or even regret. The video helps to tell a story, but it fails to paint the whole picture that many anti-violence proponents have been witnessing. Viewers of the video may be left wondering what could have brought the two individuals to that place. In the video’s depiction, passion and violence appear to be the same thing.