A study recently done in the UK has found a disturbing trend in our interpretations of lad’s magazines. In the study, participants were given two styles of quotes: that from lad’s magazines as well as quotes from a convicted rapist. What they found was that participants (all male) deemed the quotes from the convicted rapist more applicable to themselves than the quotes from the lad’s magazine. Dr Hovath, the lead researcher in the study said “We were surprised that participants more with quotes, and we are concerned that the legitimisation strategies that rapists deploy when they talk about women are these young men than we had anticipated”.
When I read this study, my jaw honestly dropped. Why are we teaching each other it is okay to talk about women in these ways? Furthermore, why is okay to talk about ANYONE in these ways? As a society we have normalized the sexualisation of women to such an extent that it is normalized to refer to women in derogatory terms. Ultimately dehumanizing women and reducing them to sexualized objects, to the same extent that a convicted rapist does.
I cannot speak for everyone but this article makes me feel a little uneasy. There is so much more to me than my sexual bits, but is that all men see when they look at me? I really hope not. Yes sexuality is a part of me, but nobody (including myself) is solely defined by their sexuality/sexual bits. I am not my breasts, yes my breasts are a part of me, but they do not define me.
One thing I really wish they did in the article is address the types of quotes that they presented the participants in the study. It does not give to the subject content of the quotes nor to what degree the quotes were sexualized. I would really like to know to what degree and what subjects it was that the people identified with the rapists more.
Ultimately this article makes me consider how much we need to revise our language regarding the sexualisation of women as objects. This is unhealthy for both adults and children but teaching them unhealthy notions of humanity.
If you have a minute this article is definitely worth the read! Are Sex Offenders and Lad's Magazines Using the Same Language?
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