"Well, I think there’s a taboo these days around men talking openly about their sexual fantasies or their participation in the sex industry. Right now, it’s quote-unquote not OK for a man to have sex with a prostitute or to be married and go to a strip club, and that’s partly due to political correctness and partly due to feminism that those things are pathologized." (Clark-Flory 2011)
I brought up the issue of pornography in my other class with Dr. Love as it relates to feminism, and I thought this article raised some good points. Often feminism seems to demonize the sexual desires of men, which can be counter productive. Before I continue, I want to make it clear that this is not a defense of the sex industry; the industry has exploited women and has many moral issues to answer for. It can certainly be seen as an extension of male power over females. But when discussing feminism, we should aim to discuss how patriarchy can be questioned and overcome. Sexuality is not really an issue here. Certainly some practices within the sex industry promote patriarchy. But as a male my sexual attraction to women is a biological drive. It's not something I can choose or necessarily control. The initial quotes from this article from a 24-year-old male regarding how he simply wants companionship struck home, as I'll admit that I have been in that position before. In such a case, where the male is simply opening up his inner-most loneliness and emotions to a random woman, can we really say he's exerting power over her? I would not go so far as to say stripping/pornography empowers the woman, but in that example it doesn't seem to me like the male is the one in control. I guess I can sum this up best by saying in criticizing patriarchal practices, we must be careful not to vilify sexuality itself.
"Women's Studies courses are often viewed as not seriously academic because so much "personal stuff" is discussed. Fear that their courses will be seen as "gut" classes has led many feminist professors to rely more on traditional pedagogical styles. This is unfortunate. Certainly, the radical alternative to the status quo should never have been simply an inversion." (bell hooks)
This touches upon the larger point I was skirting around in the first quote. As a male, I feel that feminism sometimes seeks to place blame or guilt on men simply for being men. I am absolutely NOT trying to deny that men have more power in society; they do, and we must work toward ending patriarchy at a societal level. But feminism should not and cannot be simply a radical inversion of power such that men are made to feel guilty. When we began our semester with racism, many whites in the class (myself included) were so reluctant to discuss the issue because we felt that we were being told to feel guilty simply for being white. But we cannot help being white any more than I can help being male. Guilt in either case is counterproductive and ultimately hinders efforts to address legitimate issues of privilege. As a male, I feel as though all too often feminism takes this approach. It's refreshing to discuss it in a context where I'm not made to feel guilty and we can discuss the real issues.
"How do we as feminist teachers use power in a way that is not coercive, dominating? Many women have had difficulty asserting power in the feminist classroom for fear that to do so would be to exercise domination. Yet we must acknowledge that our role as teacher is a position of power over others. We can use that power in ways that diminish or in ways that enrich and it is this choice that should distinguish feminist pedagogy from ways of teaching that reinforce domination." (bell hooks)
Feminist pedagogy ultimately is not about male vs. female, it is about issues of power. In society, we have a patriarchal power structure. Feminist viewpoints are marginalized time and time again, so much so that some women end up seeing the solution as the aforementioned radical inversion. But this does not eliminate the issue of power that is the true issue. In utilizing a feminist pedagogy, students should be encouraged to question traditional power structures. They should not accept anything as-is, but should understand fully the power structure behind the construction of any knowledge. Students can still choose to accept the dominant view, but they must be able to understand where it came from and the ramifications of accepting that view.
In regards to stripping being empowering or using sexuality as empowering, I just feel that it might be liberating in a way, but using your body should not have to be empowering. As a female, I feel empowered in front of a class when I know my material and am doing a good job, when I finish an excellent work out, or when I can hold my own in a debate. It does not get to the root- why does sexuality have to be a woman's means of empowerment? There are more ways to have power and they do not involve sex. Sex is forefront in the media and in our culture, and its a shame because there is more to life. I also think that there are other issues such as poverty and lack of opportunity that lead to women feeling like sexuality is the only means to empowerment. I was offered a job at the Gold Club as a bartender (clothes on!)at one point (my boss at my restarant was friends with the owner). I decided to keep my job at the family retaurant even though the money would have been way better and the hours would have been much less at the Gold Club. But to me, empowerment is knowing that I did not have to rely on my sexuality to make a living while completing college.
ReplyDeleteI think that's ultimately the point I'm trying to make. When women feel that their only option to feel empowered is through sexuality, then we're ultimately talking about patriarchy, since a male-dominated world has limited a woman's options. But if a woman has multiple options and chooses to feel empowered through sexuality, then faulting her for it is ultimately criticizing her own sexuality. In EDSC 425, I raised a recent example from the Tyra Banks Show. Tyra had a porn star on once who had quit porn. However, this young woman had no regrets about porn and found it exciting. Tyra Banks criticized her for participating in porn and contributing to the objectification of women. The irony to me is that Tyra rose to fame for being on the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition and still hosts America's Next Top Model, a show that I will argue objectifies women. Obviously, Tyra never had sex on camera. But the larger issue of sexuality is still at play. If a woman chooses to express her sexuality, should she be criticized for it?
ReplyDeleteIt's an interesting grey area to me, and again I'm not defending porn or patriarchical practices related to the sex industry. As you point out, some women feel they do not have a choice, and when that pressure comes into play then we're clearly talking about a problem of sexism.
I completely agree- she used her body to gain fame and uses other sexy women in her model show to gain fame. Now Oprah used her brains to become famous and powerful, and I think to most women that is more respectable. I also think that in general a pretty woman is not usually associated with a smart woman- take even the show Big Bang Theory (one of my favs). The prettiest girl on the show is very girly and not very intelligent. The other 'smart' women on the show are more plain and homely. I sometimes have womdered if I wear too much make-up or lip gloss if my professors on campus will not respect me as much as a scholar. I think this is a reason I am tyically very serious in class, I feel that it is harder to get respect.
ReplyDeleteIt's one more privilege that I possess that I'll never really have to worry about my appearance to get ahead. Examples like your concerns emphasize how women are constantly judged on appearances. I try my best to dress well everyday, but it's because I choose to dress that way for myself. I feel like women are forced by societal pressures to dress well. In other words, you don't have a choice if you want to get ahead. It just bothers me when I actually spell out my privilege that way, and I feel bad at how unfair it is.
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