Challenge Question 1 In a short paragraph (no more than 5 sentences) state the author’s main argument (premise) of Slut! Also, enumerate ten-fifteen key points of the text. 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. 1. Girls are slut-bashed because stepping outside of what is expected by the American ideal of femininity. 2. Girls and women who are sexually active are shamed of it because of the sexual double standard presented in our society. 3. Slut bashing can impact a girl in a positive or negative way; it strengthens some girls by giving them a sense of perspective while others crumble and become self-destructive. 4. The distinction between girls and women is not whether they are smart or interesting; it is whether one is a ‘good’ girl or a ‘bad’ girl. 5. Females are dehumanized and looked upon as sexual objects because their value is measured in sexual terms; thus creating the concept of a slut. 6. Girls are expected to be sexual by pleasing the men around them; while at the same time not being sexual in order to please the men as well as the people around them. 7. A girl’s role is to be contained through marriage and children, while a boy’s role is to expand his horizon through sex and education. 8. Girls and women are allowed to engage in sex if in love or engaged; while boys and men can indulge in sexual activities for any reason. 9. Girls... ... middle of paper ... ...her girl’s reputations. When diminishing other girl’s reputations, girls also diminish the other girls self worth. The slut label is the most powerful tool used to shame another girl. It is said, “two out of five girls nationwide-42 percent- have had sexual rumors spread about them.” (Pg. xiv) This shows the dominant groups use of power through their knowledge of girls having to have a specific attitude and behavior. Men use slut-bashing to keep sexuality under control while women to undermine other women. Either or, the power of doing so governs many actions done by people. So to say, knowledge can either make or break a person. It can act as a benefit, for power, or loss, for ignorance. “Do not take for granted what you know. Ask yourself how you know what you know; ask yourself whom it benefits, whom it hurts and why.” (Blackboard: Knowledge is Power)
With so many opportunities to learn about their sexuality denied, Latina girls are forced to empower their own sexual knowledge on their own or with the help of friends. One example is through the use of self-respect. Similar to how mothers often instill a sense of self-respect on to their daughters, many Latina girls use the same concept to redefine the concept of the good girl/ bad girl dichotomy. Instead of the act itself automatically labeling girls as bad girls, it is the reasoning behind their sexual activities that ultimately matter. If a girl has sex within an established sexual relationship, that may or may not be defined as love, she is viewed as a good girl. But if a girl has indiscriminate sexual relations without regard to their own sexual health, she is labeled a skank or a hoe and thus a bad girl. Additionally, young Latinas often empower their sexuality, through the
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
It is also a story in which a girl who is raped is labelled a slut and ostracized by her community rather than supported. Part of the reason this happens is because is that many of our school systems value sports – which can generate income and good press – over people, so we are often willing to overlook the bad behavior of our sports stars. It’s cognitively easier for us to blame the victim and dismiss the severity of the crime than it is for us to break down the ideals we build up in our minds about these men and women we declare “stars”; we write cultural narratives that idolize our subjects and when we get information that contradicts that we have such a difficult time with this incongruent information that it’s easier for us to deflect blame elsewhere. This is one of the reasons why we continue to talk about slut shaming. As Christa Desir points out repeatedly, slut shaming is one of the reasons that more
This then causes men to devalue not only women, but also the qualities the culture labels as feminine.
The idea that teenage boys should act a certain way towards females is usually instilled in them at a young age. According to Devor, “ Femininity must be expressed through modes of… action which communicate weakness, dependency, ineffectualness, availability for sexual or emotional service, and sensitivity to the needs of others” (Devor 6-7). In other words, men have to place women on a lower pedestal because of a woman’s so called “needs” (Devor 6). The “needs” that women express are feminine characteristics. The characteristics of females listed by Devor, does not show any sign of power or dominance. Since society believes gender is a patriarchy, females have no influence and need attention. This shows that men adjust their actions around women, since they believe that women need special attention. Furthermore, if a male possesses anything non-masculine,
If a young woman is sexually active, she may be called many derogatory words such as slut, whore, skank etc. If this young woman were to become pregnant, it would be seen as her fault. Even worse, if she were to be raped by someone, since she partakes in heterosexual acts, people would say that “she liked it.” It really is sad. On the other side of the spectrum, If a woman were to not partake in sexual acts, she would be labeled a “man-hater”,”uptight”, or “frigid”(150)
Within her study and research, Miller takes the focus on the past decade where much research has found and astounding and frightening focus on slut-shaming and sexual rumors used to bully other girls. Miller directly believes that many of these issues directly related to the circumstances that these girls are placed in an institutional setting, and society has given them limited access to information about sex and social freedom to understand and express sexual
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
Hooking up has essentially become a social norm in today’s society. Hooking up is almost second nature to adolescents and college students (Armstrong, Accounting for Women’s.). When comparing female standards of hooking up to the male standard, it is repeatedly proven that women are judged much more harshly than the average man. Other studies find women’s sexual pleasure is heightened in long term relationships and women are expected to perform sexual acts that society has deemed okay, but men are not expected to return the favor (in the eyes of society). In today’s society, social norms have given women different morals than men and given women different outlooks and expectations of sex.
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.
In today’s society, women tend to be oversexualized and, in severe cases, treated more like objects of desire from a well-choreographed fantasy than like actual human beings. Some women like this kind of mentality and openly advocate it; some do not share the same point of view yet are free to voice their opinions on the matter and protest against being treated as sexual objects. This is all rather straightforward and simple for adult females; however the real dilemma occurs when we consider young girls. Before a girl turns 18 and o...
They all agreed that a man’s sexual activity is tolerated, encouraged, and rewarded while a woman’s sexuality is restricted. Women have been judged more harshly and attacked with offensive words by others more than men. With my research, I want to figure out what society from this specific year thinks of regarding sexual double standard and the considerations of sexual activity amongst genders (2015). This article along with the first one tie together because they both specify men typically have a lot more freedom than women “and are evaluated with more acceptance and tolerance related to sexual behaviors and number of sexual partners compared to women who engage in the same behaviors (2017).” Although double standard is clear, past research has proven that there is a shifting going on with the word “slut,” but I want to find out if this shift has shifted completely and the word is now equally offensive to both men and
Anne K. Ream, an advocate for women’s issues says, “It’s not a lack of female modesty but a sense of male entitlement that leads to sexual violence. And the idea that we women can change men’s behavior by changing our clothes is not only disconcerting, it has been debunked. As millions of women know all too well, no one ever avoided a rape by wearing a longer skirt”. The dress codes and sexual education in schools is what leads to the negative thinking. It doesn’t matter if a girl is wearing a short skirt or has had sex before, she shouldn’t be seen as a slut, and if she says no to any sexual advances, it means
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
Society has always felt that there was an imbalance between genders and this imbalance can include double standards. Double standards range anywhere from sexuality to how you act and whether you are a typical male or female. These double standards affect both genders but it tends to affect women more. As time has gone by society has evolved and accepted certain changes like women are allowed to work full time and men can stay at home but one of the biggest problems hasn’t been addressed yet. Although women are gaining new freedoms there are still repercussions for being more sexual than a male or more aggressive although some believe that it is just a stereotype.