Editing Sexual objectification (section)

==Views on sexual objectification==
{{see also|Gaze}}
While the concept of sexual objectification is important within feminist theory, ideas vary widely on what constitutes sexual objectification and what are the ethical implications of such objectification. Some feminists such as [[Naomi Wolf]] find the concept of [[physical attractiveness]] itself to be problematic,<ref name=beautymyth>{{cite book |last=Wolf |first=Naomi |author-link=Naomi Wolf |title=The beauty myth: how images of beauty are used against women |publisher=Perennial |location=New York |year=2002 |orig-year=1992 |isbn=978-0-06-051218-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/beautymyth00naom }}</ref> with some [[radical feminists]]  being opposed to any evaluation of another person's sexual attractiveness based on physical characteristics.{{Citation needed|reason=This claim needs references to reliable sources|date=September 2015}} [[John Stoltenberg]] goes so far as to condemn as wrongfully objectifying any sexual fantasy that involves the visualization of a woman.<ref name=stoltenberg>{{cite book |last=Stoltenberg |first=John |author-link=John Stoltenberg | chapter = Sexual objectification and male supremacy |chapter-url=http://www.feministes-radicales.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Stoltenberg-Refusing-to-be-a-Man.pdf |title=Refusing to be a man: essays on sex and justice |publisher=UCL Press |location=London New York | page = 38 |year=2000 |isbn=978-1-84142-041-7}}</ref>

Radical feminists view objectification as playing a central role in reducing women to what they refer to as the "oppressed sex [[Social class|class]]".{{Quote without source|date=September 2015}} While some feminists view mass media in societies that they argue are [[patriarchal]] as objectifying, they often focus on [[pornography]] as playing an egregious role in habituating men to objectify women.<ref name='MacKinnon "Only Words"'>{{cite book |last=MacKinnon |first=Catharine |author-link=Catharine MacKinnon |title=Only words |url=https://archive.org/details/onlywords00mack |url-access=registration |publisher=Harvard University Press |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |year=1993 |isbn=978-0-674-63934-8}}</ref>

Cultural critics such as [[Robert W. Jensen|Robert Jensen]] and [[Sut Jhally]] accuse [[mass media]] and advertising of promoting the objectification of women to help promote goods and services,<ref name=Jhally /><ref name=Jensen>{{cite book |last=Jensen |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Jensen |contribution=Using pornography |editor-last1=Dines |editor-first1=Gail |editor-last2=Jensen |editor-first2=Robert |editor-last3=Russo |editor-first3=Ann |editor-link1=Gail Dines |editor-link2=Robert Jensen |title=Pornography: the production and consumption of inequality |page=[https://archive.org/details/loosewomenlecher00lemo/page/133 133] |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York, New York |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-19-510556-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/loosewomenlecher00lemo/page/133 }}</ref><ref name=Frith>{{Cite journal |last1=Frith |first1=Katherine |last2=Shaw |first2=Ping |last3=Cheng |first3=Hong |title=The construction of beauty: a cross-cultural analysis of women's magazine advertising |journal=[[Journal of Communication]] |volume=55 |issue=1 |pages=56–70 |doi=10.1111/j.1460-2466.2005.tb02658.x |date=March 2005}}</ref> and the television and film industries are commonly accused of normalizing the sexual objectification of women.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://my.vanderbilt.edu/wgs272/2013/04/representations-of-women-in-reality-tv/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414044502/https://my.vanderbilt.edu/wgs272/2013/04/representations-of-women-in-reality-tv/|archive-date=14 April 2019|title=Representations of Women in Reality TV|date=15 April 2013|author=balembbn|website=Feminism and Film (blog)|via=Vanderbilt University}}</ref>

The objection to the objectification of women is not a recent phenomenon. In the French [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]], for example, there was a debate as to whether a woman's breasts were merely a sensual enticement or rather a natural gift. In [[Alexandre Guillaume Mouslier de Moissy]]'s 1771 play ''The True Mother'' (''La Vraie Mère''), the title character rebukes her husband for treating her as merely an object for his sexual gratification: "Are your senses so gross as to look on these breasts &ndash; the respectable treasures of nature &ndash; as merely an embellishment, destined to ornament the chest of women?"<ref>{{cite book |last=Schama |first=Simon |author-link=Simon Schama |contribution=The cultural construction of a citizen: II Casting roles: children of nature |editor-last=Schama |editor-first=Simon |editor-link=Simon Schama |title=Citizens: a chronicle of the French Revolution |publisher=Knopf Distributed by Random House |location=New York |year=1989 |isbn=978-0-394-55948-3|title-link=Citizens. A Chronicle of the French Revolution }}</ref>

The issues concerning sexual objectification became first [[problematization|problemized]] during the 1970s by feminist groups. Since then, it has been argued that the phenomenon of female sexual objectification has increased drastically since its problematization in all levels of life, and has resulted in negative consequences for women, especially in the political sphere. However, a rising form of new third-waver feminist groups have also taken the increased objectification of women as an opportunity to use the female body as a mode of power.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Heldman | first = Caroline | title = Sexualizing Sarah Palin: the social and political context of the sexual objectification of female candidates | journal = [[Sex Roles (journal)|Sex Roles]] | volume = 65 | issue = 3 | pages = 156&ndash;164 | doi = 10.1007/s11199-011-9984-6 | date = August 2011 | s2cid = 141197696 }}</ref>

Some [[social conservatives]] have taken up aspects of the [[feminist]] critique of sexual objectification. In their view, however, the increase in the sexual objectification of both sexes in Western culture is one of the negative legacies of the [[sexual revolution]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Dr. James Dobson |url=http://www.theinterim.com/issues/society-culture/dr-james-dobson-6 |work=The Interim: Canada's life and family newspaper |location=[[Toronto, Ontario]], Canada |publisher=via [[True Media]] |date=12 January 1997 |access-date=1 August 2012}}</ref><ref name=shalit1>{{cite book |last=Shalit |first=Wendy |author-link=Wendy Shalit |title=A return to modesty: discovering the lost virtue |publisher=Touchstone |location=New York |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-684-86317-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/returntomodestyd00shal }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Reisman |first=Judith A. |author-link=Judith Reisman |title="Soft porn" plays hardball: its tragic effects on women, children, and the family |url=https://archive.org/details/softpornplayshar00reis/page/32 |url-access=registration |publisher=Huntington House Publishers |location=[[Lafayette, Louisiana]] |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-910311-92-2 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/softpornplayshar00reis/page/32 32–46, 173] }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Holz |first=Adam R. |title=Is average the new ugly? |url=http://www.pluggedin.com/familyroom/articles/2007/isaveragethenewugly.aspx |work=[[Plugged In (publication)|Plugged In Online]] |publisher=[[Focus on the Family]] |date=2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families |url=http://pureintimacy.org/piArticles/A000000551.cfm |title=Subtle Dangers of Pornography (special report by the National Coalition for the Protection of Children & Families) |work=Pure Intimacy (website) |publisher=[[Focus on the Family]] |date=July 1997 |access-date=1 August 2012}}</ref> These critics, notably [[Wendy Shalit]], advocate a return to pre-sexual revolution standards of [[sexual morality]], which Shalit refers to as a "return to [[modesty]]", as an antidote to sexual objectification.<ref name=shalit1/><ref name=shalit2>{{cite web |last=Shalit |first=Wendy |author-link=Wendy Shalit |title=Modesty revisited |url=http://www.orthodoxytoday.org/articles/ShalitModesty.php |website=orthodoxytoday.org |publisher=[[Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America|Fr. Johannes Jacobse]] |date=2000 |access-date=2015-09-07 |archive-date=2018-10-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181028151807/http://www.orthodoxytoday.org/articles/ShalitModesty}}</ref> Some social conservatives have argued that the feminist movement itself has contributed to the problem of the sexual objectification of women by promoting  "free" love (i.e. men and women choosing to have non-reproductive sex outside of marriage and for their own pleasure).<ref name=fredrickson2 /><ref>{{cite book |last1=Abrams |first1=Dominic |last2=Hogg |first2=Michael A. |contribution=Collective identity: group membership and self-conception |editor-last1=Brewer |editor-first1=Marilynn B. |editor-last2=Hewstone |editor-first2=Miles |editor-link1=Marilynn B. Brewer |title=Self and social identity |page=167 |publisher=Blackwell Publishing |location=Malden, Massachusetts |series=Perspectives on Social Psychology |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-4051-1069-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aGhvm-QH1yEC&q=Fredrickson+and+Roberts&pg=RA1-PA136}}</ref>

Others such as [[Civil libertarianism|civil libertarians]] and [[Sex-positive feminism|sex-positive feminists]] contest feminist claims about the objectification of women. [[Camille Paglia]] holds that "[t]urning people into sex objects is one of the specialties of our species." In her view, objectification is closely tied to (and may even be identical with) the highest human faculties toward conceptualization and [[aesthetics]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Paglia |first=Camille |author-link=Camille Paglia |title=Sexual personae: art and decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson |publisher=Vintage Books |location=New York |year=1991 |isbn=978-0-679-73579-3|title-link=Sexual Personae: Art and Decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson }}</ref> Feminist author [[Wendy Kaminer]] criticized feminist support for anti-pornography laws, arguing that pornography does not cause sexual violence, and bans on such material infantilize women. She has noted that [[Radical feminism|radical feminists]] have often allied themselves with the [[Christian right]] in supporting these laws and denouncing the depiction of sex in popular culture although the two groups strongly disagree on virtually everything else.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kaminer |first1=Wendy |title=When Conservative Senators Sound Like Anti-Porn Feminists|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/06/when-conservative-senators-sound-like-anti-porn-feminists/276808/|access-date=15 October 2022}}</ref> Her [[American Civil Liberties Union|ACLU]] colleagues [[Nadine Strossen]] and Nan D. Hunter have made similar criticisms.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Strossen |first1=Nadine |title=Who Really Benefits From the First Amendment |url=https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/who-really-benefits-from-the-first-amendment |access-date=15 October 2022 |publisher=Tablet}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Hunter |first1=Nan D. |last2=Duggan |first2=Lisa |title=Sex Wars: Sexual Dissent and Political Culture |year=1995 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9780415910378 |pages=44–45 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cMO2AgAAQBAJ&q=lisa+duggan |access-date=15 October 2022}}</ref> Strossen has argued that objectification is not in and of itself dehumanizing, and may fulfill women's own fantasies.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Strossen |first1=Nadine |title=Defending Pornography |year=2000 |isbn=0814781497 |pages=136–165|publisher=NYU Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=geCnBAAAQBAJ&q=Objectification%20 |access-date=13 November 2022}}</ref> Psychologist [[Nigel Barber]] argues that men, and to a lesser extent, women, are naturally inclined to focus on the physical attractiveness of the opposite sex (or the same sex in the case of gays and lesbians), and that this has been widely misinterpreted as sexism.<ref name="auto"/>

===Female self-objectification===
{{further|sex-positive feminism|feminist sex wars}}
[[File:Kilt Girls.jpg|thumb|upright|Waitresses of [[Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery]] restaurant in uniform. Tilted Kilt has skimpily dressed waitresses, and is thus an example of a [[breastaurant]].]]
[[Ariel Levy (writer)|Ariel Levy]] contends that Western women who exploit their sexuality by, for example, wearing revealing clothing and engaging in lewd behavior, engage in female self-objectification, meaning they objectify themselves. While some women see such behaviour as a form of [[empowerment]], Levy contends that it has led to greater emphasis on a physical criterion or [[sexualization]] for women's perceived self-worth, which Levy calls "[[Raunch aesthetics|raunch culture]]".<ref>{{cite book |last=Levy |first=Ariel |author-link=Ariel Levy (writer) |title=Female chauvinist pigs: women and the rise of raunch culture |publisher=Pocket Books |location=London |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-4165-2638-4|title-link=Female Chauvinist Pigs }}</ref> In a study conducted by the State University of New York, it is found that women self-objectify when trying to fit the "perfect" female standard according to the [[male gaze]].

Levy discusses this phenomenon in ''[[Female Chauvinist Pigs]]: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture''. Levy followed the camera crew from the ''[[Girls Gone Wild (franchise)|Girls Gone Wild]]'' video series, and argues that contemporary America's sexualized culture not only objectifies women, it encourages women to objectify themselves.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/article2523264.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080719231008/http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/article2523264.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 19, 2008 |work=The Times |location=London |title=Yes we are bovvered |first=Ginny |last=Dougary |date=25 September 2007 |access-date=23 May 2010}}</ref> In today's culture, Levy writes, the idea of a woman participating in a [[wet T-shirt contest]] or being comfortable watching explicit [[pornography]] has become a symbol of feminist strength.

[[Jordan Peterson]] has asked why women need to wear make-up or high-heels in the workplace, that a [[double standard]] exists for sexual harassment and women who self-objectify themselves in society.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://studybreaks.com/news-politics/jordan-peterson-2/|title=Jordan Peterson Questions If Men and Women Can Work Together|date=22 March 2018|magazine=Study Breaks|first=Miranda|last=Maples}}</ref>

Social media has made a major impact on the self-objectification of women. Through social media, women self-objectify by posting provocative images they know will be objectified by their viewers as a form of seeking validation of posting images that fits the mold of society.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Zheng |first1=Dong |last2=Ni |first2=Xiao-li |last3=Luo |first3=Yi-jun |date=2019-03-01 |title=Selfie Posting on Social Networking Sites and Female Adolescents' Self-Objectification: The Moderating Role of Imaginary Audience Ideation |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-018-0937-1 |journal=Sex Roles |language=en |volume=80 |issue=5 |pages=325–331 |doi=10.1007/s11199-018-0937-1 |s2cid=149757000 |issn=1573-2762|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

=== Latina women ===
Latina women face a particular form of sexual objectification based on [[Stereotypes of Latinos|stereotypes relating to Latina women.]] American media often portrays Latina women as being sexually promiscuous and curvaceous, having large breasts and buttocks, being melodramatic, or having a feisty attitude.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=McLaughlin|first1=Bryan|last2=Rodriguez|first2=Nathian S.|last3=Dunn|first3=Joshua A.|last4=Martinez|first4=Jobi|date=2018-09-03|title=Stereotyped Identification: How Identifying with Fictional Latina Characters Increases Acceptance and Stereotyping|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/15205436.2018.1457699|journal=Mass Communication and Society|volume=21|issue=5|pages=585–605|doi=10.1080/15205436.2018.1457699|s2cid=149715074|issn=1520-5436|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Keller identifies three main stereotypes that contribute to the objectification of Latinas. (Cantina Girl, Suffering Senorita, and [[Femme fatale|Vamp]]). The “Cantina Girl” is characterized as being an alluring sexual presence. The “Suffering Senorita” is the Latina who goes “bad” due to her love of the (usually Anglo) love interest. Lastly, the “Vamp” is seen as beautiful but devious, and a psychological threat for her wit or charm.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Merskin|first=Debra|date=2007-05-29|title=Three Faces of Eva: Perpetuation of The Hot-Latina Stereotype in Desperate Housewives|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/10646170701309890|journal=Howard Journal of Communications|volume=18|issue=2|pages=133–151|doi=10.1080/10646170701309890|s2cid=144571909|issn=1064-6175|url-access=subscription}}</ref> All three of these categorizations stem from the sexual objectification of Latina women's bodies and identities.

Such sexual objectifications hold real-world consequences for Latina women. For instance, the prevalence of negative Latina stereotypes (such as [[Sexualization|hypersexualization]]) has led to a decrease in positive [[Social identity theory|in-group attitudes]] among the Latina community.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Tukachinsky|first1=Riva|last2=Mastro|first2=Dana|last3=Yarchi|first3=Moran|date=2017-07-03|title=The Effect of Prime Time Television Ethnic/Racial Stereotypes on Latino and Black Americans: A Longitudinal National Level Study|url=https://doi.org/10.1080/08838151.2017.1344669|journal=Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media|volume=61|issue=3|pages=538–556|doi=10.1080/08838151.2017.1344669|s2cid=148590923|issn=0883-8151|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

=== Black women ===
Black women have been fetishized and objectified throughout history. They may be portrayed as having a more animalistic nature than their non-black counterparts. People who fetishize black women are sometimes pejoratively said to have "[[jungle fever]]".<ref name=":03">{{Cite journal |last=Bianca |first=Fransisca |date=2017 |title=Fetishism and Sexual Objectification towards African (Black) Women in Modern Society: Analyzing the Portrayal of African Women in the Media |url=https://journal.unpar.ac.id/index.php/Sentris/article/view/4132 |journal=Jurnal Sentris |language=en |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=91–99 |doi=10.26593/sentris.v1i1.4132.91-99 |s2cid=240601761 |issn=2746-3826|doi-access=free }}</ref>

Black women are widely objectified in the media and in pornography, and are scrutinized more closely for doing the same things as their non-black counterparts.{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}} They are also stereotyped in the media as having more curvaceous bodies and bigger lips.<ref name=":03" />