OPINIONS The Hawk
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{womanifesto} She’s just being Miley Patriarchy and female sexuality
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Unfiltered:
We asked, Hawks responded Do you think the St. Joe’s website is easy to use? How could it be improved?
What I think we need to realize is that sexual expression is highly personal and varies between individuals. Though we love boxes in our society, the truth is that everyone will have a different relationship with their body and with their sexuality.” Marissa Karomfily, ’17 Carina Ensminger ’14
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Hawk Staff
will readily admit that I am about as in touch with popular music as a caveman is. Seriously. On a scale of one to living under a rock, I probably fall around scarf-knitting grandmother. So I was late to watch not only Miley Cyrus’s performance at the VMA’s, but also her music video “Wrecking Ball.” Upon watching these performances, I was immediately shocked and perturbed. My kneejerk reaction was to ask, “What is she doing? Why is she acting this way? Does she think this attractive?” And then I realized something: those exact questions get asked of any woman who deviates from patriarchal standards of behavior. The more I reflected, the more my questions became about me rather than her. Eventually, I got to what I think is the heart of the issue: am I uncomfortable simply because her sexual expression seems to go against normative patriarchal constructions of female sexuality? Why should modesty drive everything in female sexuality? Why can’t a woman sleep with as many people as she wants? What can’t she express her sexuality in a way that empowers her? Answer: She totally can. For those who are unfamiliar with the term, patriarchy refers to social systems and structures in which males are the primary authority figures. In patriarchal societies like the United States, males predominantly hold political, moral, and fiduciary power; women and nonbinary individuals hold little power within this hierarchy and are thus excluded from shaping the discourse of society. Because the U.S. is and always has been a patriarchal society, female sexuality has been constructed by men and was, and to an extent still is, regarded as the property of men. In 18th century society, marriage was virtually the only respectable profession for upper-class women, and securing a husband was contingent upon modesty. If a woman engaged in pre-marital sex, then she was immoral, worthless, and ultimately unmarriageable. Thus, a woman’s sexuality was never entirely hers to command as it was inextricably tied to virginity and monogamy.
When we talk of race, gender, sex, and sexuality, there is one absolutely imperative lesson to be learned: history just doesn’t go away. Our society’s historical emphasis on mo desty has shaped the way in which we construct female sexuality today. This effect can be seen in the ways in which women are devalued when they do not conform to sexual standards. She has sex with multiple partners? She’s a slut. She has sex with other women? She’s a dyke. She doesn’t have sex? She’s a prude. These dehumanizing insults are used to reinforce standards of heternormative female sexual behavior. By correlating subversive behavior with derogatory insults, patriarchal standards for female modesty, monogamy, and heterosexuality are maintained. This ultimately curtails female sexual freedom. Need an example? Exhibit A: Miley Cyrus. Her sexual expression is the ultimate antithesis to modesty; she is unapologetic, visceral, and in-your-face. And because she does not prescribe to our society’s ingrained standards of modesty, she’s labeled disgusting, gross, crazy, and slutty. What I think we need to realize is that sexual expression is highly personal and varies between individuals. Though we love boxes in our society, the truth is that everyone will have a different relationship with their body and with their sexuality. Some people will have sex with a lot of people. Some people will have sex with only a few people. Some people won’t have sex at all. And as long as it’s consensual, all of it is perfectly okay. No single relationship is more moral or worthy than any other relationship, and no one should be made to feel less human simply because their relationship with their body is unlike yours. So now that I’ve watched her performances again, I’m inclined to disagree with many of what my peers have said and continue to say: she’s not a slut. She’s just being Miley. And you know what? More power to her.
Jack Slinkman, ’17
“I think it’s pretty straightforward. There is consistent updating of the website.”
“I hate the website. It’s not very user-friendly.”
Jazzmen Crafton, ’16
Emily Houston, ’16
“It’s fine. Navigating is pretty hard because you must put in exactly what you want to find, if not the result won’t come out.”
Kiara Lugo, ’14 “It’s easy to use, but you have to click on a lot of links to find what you’re looking for.”
“The website can definitely be improved to make it more efficient. The calendar is confusing.”
Cheng Wang, GS
“It is better than before, especially the home page. But it is hard to use on a smartphone.”
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