Feminist Shenanigans: The Purity Myth

This week, I finished a book. 'Murica.

Dat Unapologetic Cover Page

In all seriousness though, "The Purity Myth" by Jessica Valenti was a super-fast and worthwhile read. An exerpt:

For women especially, virginity has become the easy answer—the morality quick fix. You can be vapid, stupid, and unethical, but so long as you’ve never had sex, you’re a “good” (i.e., “moral”) girl and therefore worthy of praise. ...

Staying “pure” and “innocent” is touted as the greatest thing we can do. However, equating this inaction with morality not only is problematic because it continues to tie women’s ethics to our bodies, but also is downright insulting because it suggests that women can’t be moral actors. Instead, we’re defined by what we don’t do—our ethics are the ethics of passivity. 

It's one of those gem-like feministy things where the writing is blunt, the criticism is scathing and the analysis doesn't ignore other intersecting issues such as race and class! She also clarifies that patriarchy is harmful to people all over the gender spectrum—including men (shout out to MrRepzion, who's passionate about that issue). Valenti talks about how our fetishized ideas of virginity as an ideal state for women have eclipsed the truth. She advocates that women be ethical and sexual actors, and backs up her claims with institutionalized instances of virginity-based patriarchy. Although nonfiction, it reads like a horror story, of women in labor chained and forced to have C-sections instead of at-home vaginal births. (Speaking of chained women in labor, I'll be posting about the War on Drugs soon). And her remarks are often hilarious, despite the seriousness of the book.

I searched the book after I developed some ethical qualms with our society's worship of "The Virgin Mary." Valenti gave me answers about why we love virginity so much and, honestly, I've found that the idea of saving ones self (which is distinct from being sexually inactive—that's all good) is rooted in patriarchy. Asterix—according to earlier translation of the Bible, Mary was a "young woman," not a virgin. So to all of the rape apologists out there claiming that women should only have rights if they are virgins (ahem, Republican South Dakota representative Bill Napoli), think again.

Regardless of how much that last paragraph offended you (and I don't blame you if it did), read the book! Read it! And if you can't afford it, "obtain" it in the spirit of Aaron Swartz!

Forever correctable,

—AKB