A male chauvinist pig was a title given to men who believed they were superior to women. From the man who doesn't let his wife have a career, to the man who refers to his waitress as tootsie after slapping her on the behind, all the way down to the grade-school boys who won't let their female classmate play in the same game of kickball because of their gender - the term male chauvinist pig has been around for a while. Now, thanks to author Ariel Levy, the term female chauvinist pig was introduced into popular culture.
In her first book, Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture
Levy raised an interesting point: Women must unite in order to advance in today's culture. But how can they when there is a wave of women out there that claim they hate girls? The feminist chauvinist pig (FCP, as she refers to them) shuns girls who care about their looks yet idolizes porn stars - one of the professions that require women to be waxed, manicured and done-up like a Barbie doll. It is not that Levy is against things like pornography, in fact, she defends porn stars. But what she finds flawed is that women today idolize porn stars or women who have sex for money instead of sex for pleasure or love.
Levy interviews a variety of women, from college females who flash their breasts for Girls Gone Wild cameras, to those who have made their way to the top in the business world, begging the question: Why is it that women are making sex objects of themselves and other women? Why is that to get ahead in this world, women feel as though they need to be like a man? And, why is there an anti-woman spirit rising among women? Levy asks if the answers to these questions show how far women have come or prove that women still have a way to go.
One chapter addresses modern day lesbianism, where they refer to themselves as bois. She discusses the significance of Roe v. Wade (and Hugh Hefner's support of the first milestone in women's liberation), and the emergence of different categories of feminists during her account of feminism's history. In the most strikingly sensible chapter, she points out the convoluted messages today's teenagers are being sent: They are exposed to Maxim's and Playboy's (scantily clad) ideals of beauty but are being taught to say no to sex by their Bush administration-funded abstinent-only sex-ed programs.
Although conservative-hearted people might not like the liberal author's few references to the imperfections of the Bush administration, Levy uncovers valid points that make sense even to the most conservative reader.
There is no man-bashing or blaming of men for the obstacles women still have left to overcome. She conveys that it is unfair to blame men for the objectification of women, considering that those girls who have gone wild begged the camera crew to film them, and the CEO of Playboy is a woman. Her choice of vocabulary vividly embodies her message, which can be appreciated by the girly-girls or the female chauvinist pigs that want to be like a man as read in the pages of her book.
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Katie Kuehn
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