Widespread sexism does not occur in a sociological vacuum. Wherever there is a societal restriction of or bias against one gender, one can often find an inverse bias against the other gender. This is certainly true of sexuality! A society with a strong or residual conservative presence (such as America) is almost certainly bound to grapple with anxieties concerning sexuality, but these anxieties are often dictated in part by the social constructs that shape expectations for how people should behave as men or women.
It is no surprise, then, that the use of erotic media is often perceived differently--even to the extent where it is seen as objectifting or empowering--depending on whether the user is a man or a woman. The stereotypes surrounding the use of erotic media by men and women are in explicit contrast with each other, as one might expect. These sexist attitudes have the power to discourage some people from using morally legitimate erotic media, as well as the power to manipulate the feelings of users to the point where they view the practice as inherently shameful.
If a man uses erotic media, others will likely assume that he is addicted to the material, that he objectifies any women it features, or that he is willing to settle for using the media as a placeholder for a romantic/sexual relationship. Each of these stereotypes is deeply fallacious, with the worst of them also being deeply misandrist: automatically attributing negative characteristics to men who use erotic media is a major instance of sexism. Similarly, many people subscribe to the misandrist belief that a man who uses erotic media is simply acting like "any man would," as if all men are interested in erotic media and as if men are helpless slaves to the pursuit of sexual pleasure. The consequences of this inane myth that men have an innate and constant obsession with sexuality are highly injurious to men and women alike.
If a woman uses erotic media, she is likely to be ostracized for doing something that is allegedly shameful, but for different reasons, in accordance with the arbitrary distinctions in social expectations for men and women. She is likely to be regarded by conservative mores left in American culture as if there is something deeply wrong about her being a woman and enjoying erotic material (especially of a visual sort). While people fallaciously expect most men, if not all, to use erotic media, many are simultaneously shocked to discover that women use erotic media as well. The erroneous stereotype that treats women as asexual or demisexual beings [1] is often appealed to in order to "prove" that women have little to no interest in erotic media, but interest hinges solely upon individualistic and social factors, not gender itself.
Whether a person enjoys or abstains from using erotic media has nothing to do with their gender and everything to do with personal preferences or decisions, although American culture persists in upholding erroneous gender-based assumptions about the matter. Conservative delusions about male and female sexuality still maintain a strong grip on the American public, as do insecurities and anxieties about erotic media as a whole. Unfortunately, the prevalence of evangelical legalism is partly to thank for that. Evangelicals have proven unwilling to admit or incapable of autonomously discovering that it is not Biblically sinful for either men or women, whether single or married, to use morally legitimate forms of erotic media [2], and they have encouraged destructive stereotypes with a high level of zeal.
[1]. https://thechristianrationalist.blogspot.com/2018/11/female-sexuality.html
[2]. https://thechristianrationalist.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-truth-about-erotic-media-part-2_19.html
No comments:
Post a Comment