Loss of ones virginity has always been regarded as the time when a girl becomes a woman and steps into adulthood. But if you look at society today...there is no way in hell that's true. Girls are beginning to become sexually active at much younger ages and virginity just doesn't have the same importance as it had before. However, virginity does still have the label of purity attached to it. If a girl/woman has sex at a young age, they are seen as a slut or a whore, even if it was with someone they were truly in love with. A young girl at my high school was dating an older guy for two years when they had gone through with it, and she was seen as a slut. The thing is, she is still with that man and remains faithful. What I'm trying to say is that virginity is still seen as an important aspect of a woman's "public record", (and yes, there are those girls who do make a label for themselves) but that should not be the only aspect they are judged on (if they are to be judged at all). A woman's social standing should not be based on how many guys she has slept with, or at what age she started, but should include her personality, intellect and every other aspect of who she is.
-Nicole
Nicole,
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you, the stereotype or common misconception that a girl becomes a women after she has lost her virginity is clearly false. As you said, sex is happening younger and younger these days and in my book, most girls aren't ready to have sex and in truth don't truly know the meaning of sex and all the risks that come with it. With that being said, the social stigma and double standards of a girl's vs. boys sex life will always leave girls as a disadvantage being labeled a slut, whore, or someone who no longer deserves to be respected.
I really like your point of how girls are labeled if they have sex before marriage, especially in high school. I think it is also important to discuss other ways girls and boys are seen based on their sexual desires. It is true that girls who pledge their virginity are held up on a pedestal, they are seen as strong for resisting temptation. This is not true for those that don't pledge their virginity yet aren't interested in any form of sex (i.e. asexuality). All young people who have a low sex drive or no sexual attraction to other people are labeled as freaks. Because they aren't virgins by choose but rather circumstance they are not seen as morally superior. To the contrary individuals in the asexual community are often seen as broken, fake, unable to attract a partner, and as something that needs fixed. It seems unless you are a virgin for the exact reasons society has laid out you are not living your life right.
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