Prohan:

Lindsay Lohan had it all until she had nothing but her name. Her acting career is barren, her relationship with the media is comedic and her public persona is constantly, openly bashed. However, what remains respectable about Lohan is her devotion to her own brand of crazy. She has made huge mistakes in her 25 short years, but she’s paid the price for them.

Lohan’s strict adherence to realism hasn’t won her any Oscars, but it has won over a cult-like following of fans that love watching the starlet fall, stand back up and soldier on. Lohan’s devil-may-care attitude and evident desire for the spotlight has opened a new chapter in the paparazzi darling’s life: shooting a spread for Playboy’s upcoming issue.

When rumors began to ignite the blogosphere that Playboy was calling Lohan, I was immediately confused. But after consideration of her presently rocky state within the celebrity world, it’s obvious why she has chosen to pose nude. It makes sense in light of Lohan’s tumultuous career; one should expect the unexpected. At this point, Playboy can’t hurt a career already soaked in theatrics.

The celebrity world is collectively forgetful when it comes to personal debacles, especially if one makes a stunning recovery. It worked for Britney Spears after her head-shaving incident, so it can work for Lohan after she realizes the downfalls of her behavior.

Lohan embodies an era of popular culture that some would rather forget. At the pinnacle of her innocent persona, she was a young and humble actress who served as a proper role model. Soon enough, rumors of intense partying and bad-girl behavior began to surface in the media, tarnishing her sparkling reputation.

The celebrity world is as vacuous as it is complex, an institution pumped full of propaganda and sensationalism. It is a realm the public has a hand in creating but never actually touching. Suddenly, the starlets that inhabit this make-believe world have to handle the burden of worldly expectations.

Lohan’s mistakes were slathered all across our television screens, and her family woes congested our news feeds. Whenever she toppled in shame, the public was there to kick her while she was down and possibly post a spiteful comment if they were feeling especially generous. But regardless of Lohan’s legal shenanigans, sloppy intoxicated spectacles and inability to function as a working actress, it’s hard to lose hope that the former rising star can’t rise again.

The public is tired of glorifying party girls and their frivolous behavior. With actresses like Hailee Steinfeld and Elle Fanning leading the pack of Young Hollywood, it’s suddenly cool to be a sober female celeb. Lohan’s dysfunctional antics are merely remnants of a misguided past. It would be completely unfair to have no hope for Lindsay’s comeback; instead, one should be rooting for her if only to prove that recovery is possible. Like a martyr, Lindsay’s falling from grace has illuminated the actual problems with the celebrity world and popular culture as a whole.

Nohan:

Remember when Lindsay Lohan played Cady Heron in “Mean Girls?” That was the peak of her career. She’s been sliding down the celebrity status slide ever since.

In between stints of rehab and house arrest, Lohan has done little to keep her career afloat. She has acted in a few movies and had a few guest roles on popular TV shows, but nothing close to the hits that she used to crank out. Since her first admission into rehab, Lohan has had to step down from roles and has been pulled from movies by directors all saying that she was unreliable.

In the January issue of Playboy magazine, Lohan will be posing completely nude for an estimated $1 million, according to celebrity gossip website, TMZ.com. Lohan may believe that she can revive her career with this photo shoot, but it seems she might be resorting to it to make some easy money.

Since Lohan hasn’t been able to find a solid role that could bring in money, maybe this is the best option for her right now.

Posing in Playboy as a career revival tactic has been done before, but in Lohan’s case, it more than likely won’t restore her credibility as an actress. Many famous actresses pose in Playboy at the beginning or at the height of their careers. With this in mind, it will be difficult to create buzz over something as dead as Lohan’s career.

The photo shoot is definitely a way to stay in the public eye but that seems unnecessary as we already hear too much about Lohan anyway. Not a week goes by when Lohan is not in the news for something, usually court updates.

Posing nude might get her some career opportunities, but it’s doubtful whether any of them could be major or the kind that Lohan is seeking. The only believable roles offered might be more topless cameos in campy action movies or something in the adult entertainment industry.

This isn’t Lohan’s first time posing nude in a magazine. In 2008, Lohan restaged classic poses of Marilyn Monroe in New York Magazine. This photo spread managed to disturb audiences instead of entice them. If it didn’t help before, why would it help at this point?

Lohan is bound to follow in the footsteps of fellow actress Tara Reid. Just like Lohan, Reid started her career young and gained fame from popular teenage movies like “Van Wilder” and “American