Sexual Double Standards Essay

In contemporary society, sexual relations are significantly marked by a powerful double standard, in which only women’s sexual behaviors are policed and disciplined. More specifically, a girl who wears a mini dress and high heels on campus, has several casual sex experiences, and likes expressing her love by kissing and hugging in the public is labeled as a “slut” or a “whore.” However, if a boy enacting the same sexual behaviors may earn positive sexual reputations as a “player.” Derek Kreager and Jeremy Staff, in their article “The Sexual Double Standard and Adolescent Peer Acceptance,” defines the sexual double standard as “the differential judgment and treatment of women’s and men’s sexual behaviors.” A young woman can be easily labeled …show more content…
Our society presents women in a stereotyped way that limits people’s perceptions of females and distorts how females see themselves and what they perceive as normal and desirable for women. With the sexual double standard, women face a dilemma when trying to attract men without being considered as a “slut.” Even though the gender inequality has been improved to some extent these years as many feminists fight against social inequality, there is still a long way to go. As women and men share similar sexual desires and sexual experiences during their lives in this society, they should receive equal treatment or perceptions of individuals. Before the gender equality, our society should first change people’s stereotypes for femininity and masculinity. The media should play a positive role in promoting gender equality. Schools also pay more attentions to students’ inappropriate words and behaviors related to the gender inequality and create a tolerant, equal, and inclusive school environment. Since parents, schools, media, and other sources plays significant roles in communicating cultural values to youth generations, they should work together to promote a value that men and women are equal in all