Dear Earthlings:
Here is Alexandra's take:
Response to Sex at Dawn
The following is a response to The
Pervert’s Lament. The idea that testosterone increases libido is valid. That
being said, estrogen, also increases libido. Thus, claiming
that men have a
higher sex drive than women based on their hormones, which is implied by the
man’s statement, “The most overwhelming feeling was the incredible increase in
libido and change in the way I perceived women... Everything I looked at,
everything I touched turned into sex... I felt like a monster... It made me
understand men.” I do not deny that the man, recently undergone a sex change,
felt this way. I argue that he either was experiencing the placebo effect, or
had higher testosterone levels as a man relative to the testosterone levels he
had as a woman. Men are not inherently “monsters” due to their biology, nor are
men more sexually inclined than females. Thinking this increases a belief in a
destructive social more that is often cited as the cause of rape culture. “Boys
just can’t control themselves,” people say. This then excuses men from acts of
rape and also demonizes them as the monsters who would partake in such acts.
This is a self fulfilling prophecy. If we raise men to believe that they are
inherently more sexual than women, they will act more sexual than women.
While I agree that sexual oppression sparks
many suicides I would argue that men commit more suicides than women not
because they are more sexual than women, but because social standards for
masculine gender are much more rigid than social standards for feminine. In a
recent poll men and women were asked what they most feared. The majority of men
said humiliation, while the majority of women said rape or murder. This
reflects the intense pressure placed on men to fulfil a specific role in
society. Humiliation stems from failure in business or in bed, and thus reflect
failure of showcasing oneself as a man. This makes men more susceptible to
small irritants and lower self esteem and happiness levels. Furthermore, men
are not “allowed” to fear rapes or murders because it would reflect a certain
unmanliness. “If you are strong, as legitimate men are, then you will be able
to easily fend off assaults,” states society. I believe that such rigorous
social constructs for the male gender create engendered rage. Men, feel trapped
in a stagnant identity. If they try and escape said identity they are ridiculed
not by females, but by other men. Men hate “feminine” characteristics in other
men because they fear the “feminine” characteristics that rest in their own
souls. This explains the high rates of homophobia in men. Thus, men both
control and are slaves to societal norms. The only way out? Suicide.
Questions:
Which do you think are more intense- gender norms for men or females?
Do
you believe in inherent personality differences between men and women based on
“sex” (biological aspects)?
Alexandra Mayer
Published with permission
WGSS 3998 - Ecosexuality and the Ecology of Love
Prof. Serena Anderlini-D'Onofrio
U Conn, Storrs, Spring 2013
Dear Earthlings:
Let "nature" be your teacher in the arts of love. Education is the heart of democracy, education to love. Come
back for more wonders: Students Responses have resumed, to appear now every Tuesday.
More Book Reports to be scheduled soon, every other Thursday.
Namaste,
Serena Anderlini-D'Onofrio, PhD
Gilf Gaia Extraordinaire
University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez
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