This paper is an evaluation of the argument put forth by American lawyer and writer Wendy Kaminer in essay 15 of The Power of Critical Thinking. This argument is titled, Is Sluttishness a Feminist Statement. Overall the argument does not rate very highly. Despite Kaminer’s background in a profession in which the main objective is to win an argument, it seems that in the construction of this argument, proper critical thinking skills were not successfully applied. Without going into too much detail up front, this work relies heavily on one particular fallacy. This, coupled with the questionable nature of the truth and relevancy of the premises, is accountable for the poor rating of this work. The evaluation of the argument will begin with a seven-step analysis followed by
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There are several reasons given to support the above conclusion, starting with the claim that sluttishness “encourages sexually vulnerable girls to feel protected by highly sexualized femininity”. The reason we are meant to believe this is because it “probably encourages girls to rely on appearances”. This is apparently supported by a “study from Kenyon College” that found that “about 25 percent of the clothes found in popular stores for girls was ‘sexualized’”. This, combined with the “evidence and concern about the naïve idealization of sluttishness” that one can seemingly find by conversing with “the mothers of young daughters”, is meant to show that this obsession over appearances exists. A separate reason as to why the reader should believe that “[Sluttishness] is a perverse version of feminism”, according to Kaminer, is that it “has contributed to feminism’s incoherence”. One reason the author gives to believe this is that Sluttishness is “effectively embracing or ‘appropriating’ sexual objectification”. This claim is supported by the various women “proclaiming their sluttishness” and “tottering
There are several reasons given to support the above conclusion, starting with the claim that sluttishness “encourages sexually vulnerable girls to feel protected by highly sexualized femininity”. The reason we are meant to believe this is because it “probably encourages girls to rely on appearances”. This is apparently supported by a “study from Kenyon College” that found that “about 25 percent of the clothes found in popular stores for girls was ‘sexualized’”. This, combined with the “evidence and concern about the naïve idealization of sluttishness” that one can seemingly find by conversing with “the mothers of young daughters”, is meant to show that this obsession over appearances exists. A separate reason as to why the reader should believe that “[Sluttishness] is a perverse version of feminism”, according to Kaminer, is that it “has contributed to feminism’s incoherence”. One reason the author gives to believe this is that Sluttishness is “effectively embracing or ‘appropriating’ sexual objectification”. This claim is supported by the various women “proclaiming their sluttishness” and “tottering