In Leslie Bell’s excerpt Hard to Get: Twenty- Something Women and the Paradox of Sexual Freedom, she explains how modern women in the 21st century are torn in between their desires and self-independence. Women face contradicting identities sometimes because of a cultural stereotype or sometimes due to social expectations. According to Bell she believes that young women make senseless decisions when trying to manage their sex lives. Family, friends, and mass media send out “confusing messages” about finding fulfillment. Can women in today’s day and age really have it all? Is it possible for women to fulfill their goals of a acquiring a high paying job, raising a beautiful family of four, driving luxury cars, and living in a brick house with
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For Jayanthi she was thrilled by rebelling against her culture and the way her parents wanted her to act. She toyed with men just as they once toyed with her emotions. For Alicia she advanced in society by learning from others’ mistakes. She knew how to keep herself out of trouble and even poverty because of what she saw in her neighborhood and how those around her suffered academically as well as socially. With advantages come disadvantages. Jayanthi was essentially taken advantage of for sex by multiple men in the same night. This situation caused her to feel disgusted and powerless. She had to immediately change the way she looked at men. She became the emotionless “player.” For Alicia became accustomed to possessing traits that those around her didn’t possess. With these traits she eventually fell right back into the hole that her surroundings dug themselves in; she caught two STDs with her first two partners. It was an extreme case of irony. Clement Stone once said, “to every disadvantage there is a corresponding advantage.” In conclusion in Leslie Bell’s excerpt Hard to Get: Twenty- Something Women and the Paradox of Sexual Freedom touches upon the contradicting paths women in modern society face when it comes to finding fulfillment due to “confusing messages” sent by their family, friends, and mass media. Social messages as well as personal agency also come into play when women try to determine their identities. With so many contradicting ideas about the way women should act, it’s extremely hard for many to find a happy
For Jayanthi she was thrilled by rebelling against her culture and the way her parents wanted her to act. She toyed with men just as they once toyed with her emotions. For Alicia she advanced in society by learning from others’ mistakes. She knew how to keep herself out of trouble and even poverty because of what she saw in her neighborhood and how those around her suffered academically as well as socially. With advantages come disadvantages. Jayanthi was essentially taken advantage of for sex by multiple men in the same night. This situation caused her to feel disgusted and powerless. She had to immediately change the way she looked at men. She became the emotionless “player.” For Alicia became accustomed to possessing traits that those around her didn’t possess. With these traits she eventually fell right back into the hole that her surroundings dug themselves in; she caught two STDs with her first two partners. It was an extreme case of irony. Clement Stone once said, “to every disadvantage there is a corresponding advantage.” In conclusion in Leslie Bell’s excerpt Hard to Get: Twenty- Something Women and the Paradox of Sexual Freedom touches upon the contradicting paths women in modern society face when it comes to finding fulfillment due to “confusing messages” sent by their family, friends, and mass media. Social messages as well as personal agency also come into play when women try to determine their identities. With so many contradicting ideas about the way women should act, it’s extremely hard for many to find a happy