Author Archives: jrosealie405

Why cosmetic surgery when women’s freedoms have increased?

 For another of my classes here at SLU I am studying the phenomena of the spike of breast augmentation in the past 30 years. It has become more and more desirable in recent years for a woman’s curves (breasts and buttocks) to be lush and fuller while her waist is still expected to be small and her stomach flat. These surgeries as well as other cosmetic procedures continue to rise is popularity over the years. However this has created an anomaly in our culture. Why is it that even though in the past thirty years women have increasingly gained more freedoms, yet they feel an increasing requirement to alter their bodies? It is fact that in the last century huge gains have been reached for women, yet this fact does not match up with how many women are treating their bodies. What in your opinion can account for this?

Saint Louis Art Museum Visit!

This week on Friday I visited the Saint Louis Art Museum with a couple friends of mine! The first thing that I noticed while exploring was that nudity was/is a huge theme for art involving human bodies. However, I did not notice too much of a discrepancy between the nudity of male and female bodies. There was a nearly equal amount which I will admit was much to my surprise. One theme I did notice though was the difference between why men and women were typically depicted in portraits or busts. For the women it was all about whose wife or mistress they had been, often followed by a description of their beauty. For the men it was about their accomplishments and what they had achieved in life. The Gorilla Girls were also on my mind as I checked the artists’ names and found a sharp discrepancy between male and female artists. I can only recall one or two female names definitively.

A Male’s Perspective on Masculinity and Sexual Aggression

A Male’s Perspective on Masculinity and Sexual Aggression

This article especially caught my eye because it’s a direct response to the TED talk we watched a little earlier in the class. I especially liked his point about how even socially acceptable behaviors like staring at a woman effect our society profoundly (it’s so true)! Many time I think it’s difficult for some men to comprehend how women feel because they have never had to deal with the stares or the fear of rape or sexual aggression. I do wish the article was a little bit longer and had gone slightly more in depth or even brought up the “Man Box”, but over all I enjoyed the ideas! The writer should have been more confident in his ideas; they were good ones!

Sacrilege- Yeah Yeah Yeahs

I was listening to a playlist on YouTube the other night and this song popped up. I happened to see a part of the video, and I was disturbed enough to watch the whole thing. ***WARNING*** This video is very disturbing, so by prepared for graphic images. I thought it was interesting how the girl in the video was condemned for the affairs she had with each of the different people, but those killing her felt they had not committed any crime. With our talks on female sexuality and the cult of virginity I thought it would fit into our discussions.

Half the Sky- Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn

Half the Sky- Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn

This book has been my life changer. I read this as a requirement for a language class in high school, and it has been the strongest aspect in both my academic and career decisions. Half the Sky addresses the oppression of women world wide in a moving yet frank way. This book allows for no hiding from the truth. I found myself crying for young women being stoned to death and throwing the book across the room after the rape of a three year old child was described. This is an account of crimes against humanity, targeting women. I could go on and on about the book, but I do plan to bring it in for show and tell so I want to save some for later. Please, check it out. It may be hard to get through, but I promise the rewards are great. It’s not only a book of tragedy, but also of perseverance and hope. I believe we owe it to the women overcoming these circumstances to keep ourselves informed and aware of their suffering.

A Post About Rape: From “Real Men”

A Post About Rape: From “Real Men”

When I first hot play on this video I was terrified of what was going to happen. I actually physically steeled my body in preparation for what I was about to see. I wondered if what I was going to watch was even legal, or how this guy got away with it! When I finally watched the video it was a big surprise! I encourage all of you to watch this and then read the article after. My boyfriend is actually the one who sent this to me, and it was a great insight into what real men think about rape culture.