"It's not like I was sleeping with her..."

In Beyonce's song, "If I Were a Boy", the lyrics examine the strong cultural messages and double standards between men and women, concerning the societal norms and acceptable behavior within an intimate relationship. Paired with the you-tube video, which portrays Beyonce in the place of her boyfriend, for a day, with the gender roles of co-workers and friends reversed, the song conveys the message that it is more standard, or acceptable within western society for a man to be more focused on self-development in a relationship, and have the freedom to be more unfaithful to his partner than a woman. Developing the issues of commitment within relationships, the you-tube video is introduces the narrator's dissatisfaction with behavior society deems acceptable.
Introducing the video, with the gender roles of all of the characters reversed, there is a male co-worker on police duty with Beyonce, who obviously has a greater relationship than just a friend. Throughout the video, he keeps stealing glances at her, and looking at her in a sexual manner. Beyonce, portraying the role of her boyfriend, encourages this behavior, showing the male co-worker how to fire a gun at the gun range, while at the same time touching and caressing the male co-worker. This chemistry is evident when the very next scene focuses on that same co-worker looking at Beyonce's behind, which is emphasized by the camera angle and her form-fitting police outfit for the video. Simultaneously, the lyrics of the music is "I know that she'd be faithful", comments on flirting behavior a man can still carry out and still have the devotion of a girlfriend. The video also portrays Beyonce's boyfriend, symbolizing the devotion of a woman, discouraging a physical relationship with another co-worker of the opposite sex, and declining an invitation to go out, while Beyonce, symbolizing a man, goes out to dinner with her male co-worker she has been flirting with.
Further commenting on socially acceptable behavior of men is the earlier line "I'd kick it with who I wanted and never get confronted for it", which develops the idea that it is acceptable for men to 'players' and flirt with girls, while it is unacceptable for women to flirt with men, because they are given a derivative connotative word, 'slut', or 'whore'. Socially, if a man is labeled as a 'player', he is given a status by other men, but if a woman does the same thing, she is looked upon as something dirty, unclean, and unfaithful.
The double standard of sexuality between men and women is fully expressed at the end of the song where the line that shifts the gender roles to current life "It's not like I was sleeping with her", has different reactions by each character and different tones produced, depending on whether the speaker is Beyonce or her boyfriend, now portraying a man's role in society. When the the line is said by Beyonce, there is a long, awkward pause, indicating that the behavior of flirting, and going out with the opposite sex while in a relationship is rare, socially unacceptable. However, when the line is said by her boyfriend, there is less tension created by his laughter and quick delivery of the line.
Throughout this song, especially the lyrics"'Cause you're taking her for granted, and someday you'll wish you were a better man", insinuates the fact that men have this freedom with the sole justification of their sex, reinforced by the line, "but you're just a boy". By concluding the song, with this line, the narrator indicates that society's belief that simply because a boy is a boy, he has the right to do "destroy" a relationship, by being unfaithful. The narrator expresses dissatisfaction of society's view of male sexual freedom with a tone of sadness in the line, "you don't care how it hurts," and then issues the consequences of the man's actions, "If you thought I would wait for you, you thought wrong", giving the man the freedom to sexual promiscuity, but making him "loose the one" he wanted.