After briefly discussing the possible issues to cover in our class discussion, the topic of virginity seemed the most interesting to present to the class. The members of my group had a great discussion earlier in the semester when we briefly covered virginity and all of us were excited to lead the class discussion on the subject. I began to prepare for the project by reviewing the documents multiple times. Each time I read the documents, I would write down my thoughts and use those to formulate discussion questions. In the following paragraphs, I will explore some of my group’s self-generated discussion questions.
Having grown up in the “Bible-Belt” with Christian parents, the concept of abstinence-only sex education is very familiar to
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Since its inception, virginity has been used by society to control the actions, behavior, and choices of women. However, virginity continues to be defined by society and not by the individual. Too often, young men and women look to media, religion, and society to define virginity for them, rather than searching inside oneself for what they want it to mean. Truthfully, “virginity is just too subjective to pretend that we can define it” (Valenti, 140). The association between virginity and morality continues to be a major theme in society. This link prevents women from being judged on their accomplishments and intellect. Instead, virginity is used “as a stand-in for women’s morality” (Valenti, 142). No matter what a woman has accomplished, if she is deemed “unmoral” because she is no longer a virgin, society looks down upon her. Virginity is impossible to define and should exist only within a person, if they so choose, and not be “worn” about in public to be prided …show more content…
After reading Valenti’s article where she illustrates a virgin as “sexy but not sexual. She’s young, white, and skinny. She’s a cheerleader, a baby sitter”, I began to recognize the depraved image of what society expects in the image of a virgin. The irony between society connecting virginity with morality and the over sexualization of virginity is extremely apparent. Samantha Pugsley explains that, “I learned that as a girl, I had a responsibility to my future husband to remain pure for him. It was entirely possible that my future husband wouldn't remain pure for me, because he didn't have that same responsibility” (Pugsley, 1). Women are expected to be virgins, innocent, pure, and absent of sexual desire. Yet, the more “virginal” a woman is, the more sexually desirable she is to a man who has not been held to this same moral standard. Why is it that this connection exists? I continue to struggle to answer this troubling question, however I hope that the class discussion can provide some insight into the
The values and rules of traditional community add great pressure on an individual 's shoulder while choosing their identity. While women 's have relatively more freedom then before but however values of traditional communities creates an invisible fence between their choices. It put the young women in a disconcerting situation about their sexual freedom. Bell demonstrates the how the contradiction messages are delivered to the young woman 's, she writes that “Their peers, television shows such as Sex and the City, and movies seem to encourage sexual experimentation... But at the same time, books, such as Unhooked and A Return to Modesty advise them to return to courtship practices from the early 1900s”(27).
It has been almost thirty three years since the first federal funding was put to use in “. . . sex education programs that promote abstinence-only-until-marriage to the exclusion of all other approaches . . .” according to the article “Sex education” (2010) published by “Opposing Viewpoints in Context;” a website that specializes in covering social issues. Since then a muddy controversy has arisen over whether that is the best approach. On one hand is the traditional approach of abstinence (not having sex before marriage), and on the other is the idea that what is being done is not enough, and that there needs to be a more comprehensive approach. This entails not only warning against sex, but also teaching teens about how to have “Safe Sex” (“Sex Education,” 2010).
Author Amy Schalet ultimately brings up a delicate and sensitive topic about teens having sex, comparing the different mindsets of families in the Netherlands and in America. By Schalet carrying the interviews, she found out that teens in America are a lot more secretive with their personal lives, and would not discuss it with their parents, unlike teens from the Netherlands that eventually told their parents. While some people might say that it’s a matter of common sense, some other people might argue it has to do with culture. Catholics, for example, believe in celibacy until you have decided on the person you will marry. You are taught from young age to protect your body and mind from carnal desires and focus on other things that will benefit you on the long run. Obviously, times have changed, and not many people practice this anymore. We can see an example on shows on television about teen pregnancy, while these shows aren’t necessarily telling to go ahead and have children at young age, it might have negative impact on younger girls, almost like a unintentional role model. On the other hand, writer Jamaica Kincaid, demonstrates the In The Girl we see the other side of the coin, a mother that is so demanding and is always right, no matter the outcome, she is right, and things have to be done a certain way. I think a figure like this would not benefit
Since the HIV/AIDS epidemic began in the U.S. in the early 1980s the issue of sex education for American youth has had the attention of the nation. There are about 400,000 teen births every year in the U.S, with about 9 billion in associated public costs. STI contraction in general, as well as teen pregnancy, have put the subject even more so on the forefront of the nation’s leading issues. The approach and method for proper and effective sex education has been hotly debated. Some believe that teaching abstinence-only until marriage is the best method while others believe that a more comprehensive approach, which includes abstinence promotion as well as contraceptive information, is necessary. Abstinence-only program curriculums disregard medical ethics and scientific accuracy, and have been empirically proven to be ineffective; therefore, comprehensive sex education programs which are medically accurate, science-based and empirically proven should be the standard method of sex education for students/children in the U.S.
Gozalez-Lopez interviews people about their personal stories and how they dealth with situations similar to such. One of the people she interviews, Diego, talks about what he had to do to save his girlfriend from public shame because she had sex with him. “I married her because of honor. I had to come out and face the bull, to protect her image and her name” (Gonzalez-Lopez, 98). If a woman looses her virginity before marriage she can be seen as a whore, slut, or not properly raised. Many women are forced to marry men that they would never consider husband mate...
Planned Parenthood is a non-profit organization that aims to provide healthcare for women and educate people of all ages about sexual education. Their website (www.plannedparenthood.org) allows both women and men to learn about reproductive health, find a health center, and discover more about the “mission” of Planned Parenthood. “Virginity” (https://www.plannedparenthood.org/teens/sex/virginity) is the title of one of the articles in the Info For Teens section of the website. This article loosely defines virginity and addresses some of the common fears teens may have about the subject. Another article, “Am I Ready?” (https://www.plannedparenthood.org/teens/sex/am-i-ready), serves to give advice to those who are thinking about having sex for the first time, or just being physically intimate with another person for the first time. Both of these articles leave very little out in terms of different sexualities, genders, and other minority groups. They also both explore the ways power relationships (in this case, boyfriend and girlfriend) can affect sexual relationships. As a result, Planned Parenthood creates information that can be applied to almost any person, male or female,
Masland, Molly. “The Sex Education Debate: An Overview.” Sex Education. Ed. Kristen Bailey. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2005. At issue. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 23 Oct. 2013.
Teenage sexual activity is a major problem confronting the nation and has led to a rising incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and teenage pregnancy. The existence of HIV/AIDS has given a sense of urgency to the topic of sex education. The issue of sex education in schools especially in the formative years has been a subject of intense debate among parents, school officials, health scientists and religious authorities worldwide for a considerable period of time. The debate centers on comprehensive sex education versus abstinence-only sex education in school. Abstinence only sex education is a sex education model that focuses on the virtue of abstinence from sexual activities; therefore, encouraging sexual abstinence until marriage. This form of sexual education completely ignores all other elements of comprehensive sexual education like safe sex and reproductive health education issues like the use of contraceptives and birth control methods. Comprehensive sex teaching encourages promiscuous sexual activity as “a natural part of life.” Proponents of abstinence only education activists cite several reasons why this type of education is the best. It focuses on the upholding of moral virtues. They also claim that sex outside marriage hat is “encouraged” by the comprehensive sex education which as a result, has some emotional and physical downfall especially when done at a very young age. They blame the comprehensive sex education for failing to discourage premarital sex especially at this time when the HIV pandemic is busy devouring young people in various parts of the world (Deborah 2). In fairness, both programs were designed to decrease the incidence of STDs...
Currently, sex education in schools is primarily centered on the distribution of information without elaborating about the moral implications dealing with sex. Teenagers are well versed on things such as how long sperm lives inside the body and can identify all of the workings of the female reproductive system. However, they are still getting pregnant and still contracting sexually transmitted diseases. Anna Quindlen examines this trend in her essay, “Sex Ed”. Quindlen points out that it is the moral implications of sex that have been left out of the curriculum and it is the responsibility of parents to make those moral connections with their children (277). Understanding the morality of sex, she argues, may help teenagers to make more informed decisions on taking the next step towards sexual activity. They must understand that “…when you sleep with someone you take off a lot more than your clothes” (Quindlen 277). Sex is not simply a...
...odity, desperately sought after by men. Their commodity places them in a double bind: "To be sexually active is to be suspect, to be a virgin is to be desirable and therefore potentially sexually active and potentially suspect. Either way women lose. Either way they are sexualised" (Macfarlane 78).
The government likes to pretend that if high school students get taught the “abstinence-only” method they would never think of taking part in sexual activities. Statistically this is incorrect. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “56 percent of high school students are virgins”(Martin). For the 56 percent abstinence only is doing them well, but there are still 44 percent of high school students engaging in sex without knowing the precau...
Due to the girl’s current lifestyle and behavior, the mother is focused on sharing the value to save her daughter from a life of promiscuity. The mother fears her daughter will become a “slut” and insists that is exactly what the daughter desires. Moreover, the mother is very blunt with her view when she uses repetition with the statement, “… the slut you are so bent on becoming.” (Kincaid92). It is very clear that the mother holds a reputation to such a standard that it could determine the overall quality of a woman and her life. Therefore, a woman’s sexuality should be protected and hidden to present the woman with respect and to avoid the dangers of female sexuality. The mother is very direct in calling out certain, specific behaviors of the daughter. Such as, the way the daughter walks, plays with marbles, and approaches other people. The mother is very persistent that the daughter must act a certain way that can gain their community’s respect. She fears the social consequence of a woman’s sexuality becoming
First of all, it is the many younger teenagers who are inexperienced that get in to trouble like teenage pregnancy. The experience that is so needed is supposed to come from their parents, but that doesn’t happen because, the parents don’t want to talk about the sex issues. With the strict parents the experience is hard to ...
Rates of sexually transmitted disease and teen pregnancy are higher in the United States than in any other domesticated country. Not surprising since American culture has brought sex to the forefront over the last few decades. The need for comprehensive sex education in schools can teach children that the romanticized relationships and sexual interactions in the media aren’t showing the whole story. For children with ...
The condoms display in the Hidden Heroes: the Genius of Everyday Things exhibit is a showcase that would cause an individual to wonder about adolescents’ overall knowledge of human sexuality. In today’s society, children are susceptible to learning about such a delicate topic not only from their families and peers, but through the media as well. These sources often provide misrepresentations of the information due to ignorance and biased views. Therefore, in order to inform individuals more accurately, sex education programs have been created with the intention to be implemented into schools across the country. This has led up to being one of the most controversial issues hovering over educational institutions, where the inclusion of such programs has been hotly debated. However, recently, the dispute is not so much about whether sex education should be taught in schools, but rather what content should be taught and what approach should be taken.