If someone were to type “famous slut quotes” in a Google search they might be surprised at what they find. The latest news shows political figures losing their composure or the social bookmarking website Pinterest, advertising “funny slut quotes” such as “You’re not a slut? So… are you like, a volunteer prostitute or something?” Where once slut was used as a vicious slur, now women of all ages can be found wearing apparel labeled “slut”. Female pop stars promote themselves with over sexualized imagery as a symbol of empowerment. Pole dancing exercise became a fad and “slut” can be found printed on lip balms today. One would think that society’s attitude is changing because of slut posturing, but is this really so? Should girls and women shame the slur or embrace it? While mainstream entertainment and retail “neutralize” slut by using it as a provocative gimmick, it still …show more content…
Chaucer described a slut to mean a man “untidy and slovenly.” (McMahon 5). However, he term was still most often used towards women. For some time the English referred to a trash receptacle as a “slut hole”. (Hiskey web) In today’s lexicon slut takes on more than a dirty suggestive tone, but one that deeply threatens the values of a woman. Webster’s dictionary defined a slut as “A woman of negligent tidiness and dress; a slattern.” In the Larousse dictionary it describes a slut as “A dirty, slovenly woman, a loose woman, especially a prostitute.” (Sayo A2) Charlene Sayo in the Vancouver Sun wrote, “Both definitions indicate two things: A slut is cheap and dirty and a slut is a woman. ” (Sayo A2) It is loosely thrown around among friends but also is used with intent to shame a girl or woman. Sayo asked teenage boys and girls to describe what makes someone a slut. They felt a slut was a girl who would have sex with anyone, even a stranger- “…I think a slut is basically a hooker…” said one teen
After a girl has been called a prude for so long, they may develop a sense of being different and want to dress and act more provocatively. They start to think that they need to act a certain way and become like everyone else. A “good” slut is a girl who might dress in short shorts and a spaghetti t-shirt and everyone judges her based on that, and not because the weather is hot outside. It is unfortunate, but it does happen that people are quick to judge others based on the clothing preference such as short shorts. However, when I read about a “bad” slut, I feel like these are the girls who actively make a to effort to go out and participate in promiscuous behavior on purpose. “Sometimes they are too wild or behave out of the confines of appropriate behavior” (Tanenbaum, 2015 p.184). Personally, this reminds me a lot of my middle school days. Although I went to a private school where wearing uniform was required, many of the girls made it an effort to define it. I remember how I had a friend who had a bigger butt than the rest of the girls in the class and so she would use that excuse to roll up her skirt and make it shorter than the 2 inch about the knee rule. She would go out of her way to try and get around the uniform rules and the guys in the class would love it, whereas the girls would always call her a slut. Nonetheless, like mentioned before, she loved the “slut” and saw it as a
Women are prizes to be won over in this tale. Competition for women is portrayed throughout the entire story. This competition leads to lies and deceit which overall creates an unstable conflict. But, because of the way of life, the people who don’t lie and deceit still lose out in the end. Therefore, Chaucer teaches us that life isn’t fair and that people don’t always get what they deserve.
Wife of Bath. Her character is noted to be strong and bold and we learn
The Miller's Tale and The Wife of Bath's Tale feature two characters that, though they may appear to be different, are actually very similar. They both seem to confirm the anti-feminine beliefs that existed at the time Chaucer wrote his Canterbury Tales. However, they go about it in different ways. Alison, the woman in The Miller's Tale, tries to hide the fact that she has a passion for men other than her husband, and keep her position as an upstanding citizen intact. The Wife of Bath, meanwhile, has no qualms about displaying herself as she really is. She is not ashamed of the fact she has married five times, and is about to marry again. She hides nothing. While Alison differs from the Wife of Bath in appearance and the way she conducts herself in public, inside they are more alike than Alison would probably care to admit.
The question still remains even today that what do women most desire to be happy? The Canterbury tale, by Chaucer the Wife of bath talks about women and their happiness. The wife of bath’s prologue describes the audience about her experience with men and marriage from her past. As Chaucer starts to describe Allison, the wife of bath the very first word from her prologue is Experience. It is clear to the audience is that her prologue and her tale will definitely be focused with her experience in her life. Her experience with sex within marriage allows Allison to gain control over her many husbands and she uses her tale to carry out her message that women should be dominion in marriage, as being dominion is what will please any woman more than sex, money, wealth or anything that may be.
The Canterbury Tales, written by the English poet Geoffrey Chaucer, is a poem comprised of a collection of stories, which skilfully critique major aspects and attitudes of European society during the Middle Ages. Although truly horrific and atrocious, the rape of women was a prevalent occurrence within Middle Aged society. In The Wife of Bath’s Tale, Chaucer tells the story of a lustful knight who came across a young woman and “spite of all she said / By very force he took her maidenhead (Chaucer, 282).” In the tale, it is clear that Chaucer recognizes rape as a violent crime that should “[condemn] the knight to lose his head (Chaucer, 282).” At the end of this tale, however, Chaucer grants not only freedom of death to the knight, but a blissful,
Chaucer's "The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale" is a medieval legend that paints a portrait of strong women finding love and themselves in the direst of situations. It is presented to the modern day reader as an early tale of feminism showcasing the ways a female character gains power within a repressive, patriarchal society. Underneath the simplistic plot of female empowerment lies an underbelly of anti-feminism. Sometimes this is presented blatantly to the reader, such as the case of Janekin's reading aloud from "The Book of Wikked Wives" (The Wife of Bath's Prologue and Tale 691). However, there are many other instances of anti-feminism that may not scream so loudly to the reader. This is shown in the disappearance of the rape victim and the happy ending for the Knight. While the overall story is one of supposed feminism shown through women's empowerment, there are many aspects of "The Wife of Bath" that are anti-feminist in nature.
During the medieval ages, women were described as evil creatures that would destroy anyone standing in their way to get what they want. People claimed that women's malicious intentions clouded their judgment from doing the right thing forcing them to be selfish. In Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales and Malory’s The Death of King Arthur, both focus on women’s behavioral impulses through their dishonesty, manipulation, and their promiscuity.
Although society has advanced dramatically technologically, I feel that we still have a long way to go when it comes to how we view one another. It amazes me that in a society such as ours, that bases its existence on the equality of all people, that misogyny (as it occurred in medieval times) still takes place. A timeless example of misogyny is the objectifying of women, which suggests that a woman's sexual beauty is her only worth. In dealing with this misconstruction, some women, as in the case of Bercilak's wife in "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" and Alisoun in "The Miller's Tale" from The Canterbury Tales, use their sex appeal to deceive, lure, and, manipulate men. A small part of me shamefully admits that I respect, and even appreciate, the way in which a woman can outsmart a man by entertaining his sexist views; however, as a whole, I strongly feel that if a woman uses her sexuality for her own advancement, then she is contributing to her own misogyny.
The traditional morality regarding sexual behavior has very little place in the hook up culture of contemporary society, which has nevertheless given birth to a new sort of sexual double standard, featuring the masculine “stud” and the feminine “slut” (Fjaer, Pedersen, Sandberg 2015, p.3). Essentially, this policing stratagem glorifies men’s sexual conquest, while shaming women for similar behavior.
Modern America, in accordance to course materials and personal experiences, overtly sexualizes people, specifically among the youth, engendering new versions of gender expectations, roles, relationships, and how society views people based on appearance, sexual promiscuity or supposed promiscuity, and so on. Easy A (2011) represents an example clarifying how gender socialization impacts today’s youth via several concepts such as slut shaming, slut glorification, challenging masculinity, dating/hooking up, gender expectations and social acceptance. This film primarily focuses on a female’s promiscuity. Olive, the main character, is automatically labeled slut, after a rumor she unintentionally sparked by a bathroom conversation. Soon, the rumor spread and Olive became “school slut” in minutes.
Leora Tanenbaum’s book Slut! imposes the argument of the unfairness and small mindedness of the sexual double standard between teenagers and what leads them to label others of the name slut. Throughout the book, the author discloses many different studies and stories to help the readers understand the underlying cause and issue of the name slut and how it affects different girls and women around the country.
Throughout the ages, the story of the original sin is used to explain the struggles of women and why they are inferior to man. Eve “took of [the forbidden tree’s] fruit and ate” (Genesis 3:6), and as punishment, God made it so “[her husband] shall rule over her” (3:16). As an important text during the lifetime of the characters who tell the collection of stories that compose the Canterbury Tales, most of the pilgrims were familiar with this scripture and believed that the Bible’s word was law. For that reason, the popular belief of the time was that women were inferior to their male counterparts. However, a couple of characters in the tales challenge this viewpoint and show that women were also capable of making their own choices. As the pilgrims struggle with the issue of where women belong, their view of Eve in the story of original sin is altered as well. From mild indifference to intimate involvement, each pilgrim has a different attachment to the story of the Eve, and their views on women in society are reflected in their connection to the story.
Due to the girl’s current lifestyle and behavior, the mother is focused on sharing the value to save her daughter from a life of promiscuity. The mother fears her daughter will become a “slut” and insists that is exactly what the daughter desires. Moreover, the mother is very blunt with her view when she uses repetition with the statement, “… the slut you are so bent on becoming.” (Kincaid92). It is very clear that the mother holds a reputation to such a standard that it could determine the overall quality of a woman and her life. Therefore, a woman’s sexuality should be protected and hidden to present the woman with respect and to avoid the dangers of female sexuality. The mother is very direct in calling out certain, specific behaviors of the daughter. Such as, the way the daughter walks, plays with marbles, and approaches other people. The mother is very persistent that the daughter must act a certain way that can gain their community’s respect. She fears the social consequence of a woman’s sexuality becoming
As a man fascinated with the role of women during the 14th Century, or most commonly known as the Middle Ages, Chaucer makes conclusive evaluations and remarks concerning how women were viewed during this time period. Determined to show that women were not weak and humble because of the male dominance surrounding them, Chaucer sets out to prove that women were a powerful and strong-willed gender. In order to defend this argument, the following characters and their tales will be examined: Griselda from the Clerk's Tale, and the Wife of Bath, narrator to the Wife of Bath's Tale. Using the role of gender within the genres of the Canterbury Tales, exploring each woman's participation in the outcomes of their tales, and comparing and contrasting these two heroines, we will find out how Chaucer broke the mold on medievalist attitudes toward women.