|
He's a Stud, She's a Slut, and 49 Other Double Standards Every Woman Should Know |  | Author: Jessica Valenti
Publisher: Seal Press
List Price: $13.95
Buy New: $7.53
as of 11/23/2009 12:49 CST details
You Save: $6.42 (46%)
New (35) Used (14) from $6.00
Seller: feathersbooks
Rating:  14 reviews
Sales Rank: 86359
Media: Paperback
Pages: 224
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 6.9 x 5.4 x 0.8
ISBN: 1580052452
Dewey Decimal Number: 305.420973
EAN: 9781580052450
ASIN: 1580052452
Publication Date: May 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
| |
| Features:
|
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
| |
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Double standards are nothing new. Women deal with them every day. Take the common truism that women who sleep around are sluts while men are studs. Why is it that men grow distinguished and sexily gray as they age while women just get saggy and haggard? Have you ever wondered how a young woman is supposed to both virginal and provocatively enticing at the same time? Isn’t it unfair that working moms are labeled “bad” for focusing on their careers while we shake our heads in disbelief when we hear about the occasional stay-at-home dad?
In 50 Double Standards Every Woman Should Know, Jessica Valenti, author of Full Frontal Feminism, calls out the double standards that affect every woman. Whether Jessica is pointing out the wage earning discrepancies between men and women or revealing all of the places that women still aren’t equal to their male counterparts—be it in the workplace, courtroom, bedroom, or home—she maintains her signature wittily sarcastic tone. With sass, humor, and in-your-face facts, this book informs and equips women with the tools they need to combat sexist comments, topple ridiculous stereotypes (girls aren’t good at math?), and end the promotion of lame double standards.
|
| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 14
 Questions and answers provide some relief. August 4, 2009
E. Ruiz (New York City)
I was so excited when I saw this book and started to look through it. Finally a book that covers many issues the modern American woman is faced with everyday. It is written in an open conversational style and I got through it in less than a day...very compelling. The only downside (minor) is a lot of the solutions are centered around awareness and advocation which is how I have been handling my life as a woman so far...for me it is exhausting to take on societal problems daily and I was hoping for a magic wand to make it all disappear. Completely unrealistic of me but regardless I am glad I read this as it validates many gender inequities that I sometimes feel only I was effected by. Buy it and read it...you will feel awakened.
 A good topic with a respectable stance, tainted by bias. June 30, 2009
Michael R. McDonald (Madison, WI)
2 out of 7 found this review helpful
I'm a guy.
How many women reading automatically value this review less because I'm a man? I'm guessing more did than not, albeit a few only subconsciously. Well, there's a double-standard for you.
It is natural as humans to pass automatic judgments and assume double-standards based on sex, race, creed, and any other of the countless factors that make us who we are. Continuing to rely on these judgments is where the problem lies. It is not enough to condemn these biases, we have to collectively work to overcome them. That is where Jessica Valenti falls short.
The plain and simple of it: I didn't like this book. It's not that I disagree with Valenti's stance, rather I do agree that women face many stereotypes that men do not. There are many double-standards that disfavor women greatly. But Valenti's overtly biased and ranting approach do little to further understanding of these topics--especially outside of the group of people that already whole-heartedly agree with her.
Although I wouldn't call Valenti a "man-hater," her obvious disposition towards men is shown throughout the book in the form of negative connotations and bias. This seems, to me, even more unproductive in reaching an understanding and overcoming these double-standards. Sure, there are still scores of chauvinistic pigs out there, but more and more men than ever before are truly on the side of women when it comes to negative stereotypes and unfair labels. Her temperament towards men, and consequently her writings', does nothing more than turn men off to the prospect of trying to learn about and rise above many of these hypocrisies.
Valenti had the chance while writing this book to expose and diffuse double-standards toward women. I gave the book two stars because Valenti does succeed in raising questions. I do respect her--her often loud and aggressive approach has worked for feminism when it has been most needed. For those who are willing to think for themselves, they are able to read this piece and draw their own conclusions. But for the cost of the book, they are unfortunately only paying for a lengthy tirade that accomplishes little.
If Valenti had approached the topics with a cool hand and calm demeanor, she could have successfully enlightened many who either subscribed to these stereotypes or were unaware of them. Instead, she rants for nearly 200 pages while offering little concrete or usable material to those looking for a solid argumentative approach on this subject.
 Good information, needs better catchphrases November 30, 2008
Stacey (Maryland)
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
Valenti points out subtle and not-so-subtle double standards affecting the genders. Some of the information I already knew, and some of it didn't really match the catchy subheadings, but overall, a worthwhile book.
 Simplistic and shallow male bashing November 19, 2008
theantifeminist (Spain)
14 out of 64 found this review helpful
As a previous reviewer alluded to - men and women are biologically different. The sexual act will always have different significance for male and female and will always be interpreted and judged differently. It is a fundamental truth of anthropology that societies and their moral codes (or systems of behaviour), both animal and human, are built and structured around the competing sexual mating strategies of the male and female. If an act is likely to have differing consequences for men and women, it is not necessarily a 'double standard' to judge it differently according to gender.
Furthermore, the book assumes that it is the men 'with all the power' who are determining those 'double standards'. Actually, at least nowadays, it is women who accuse other women who sleep around or dress provocatively of being sluts far more than men do. Go to YouTube and type in 'sexy dance' and check the number of times that females make 'dirty slut' comments and compare them to the flattering (if crude) comments made by the guys. For men, the word 'slut' used to describe a woman is now almost a synonym of 'hot', whereas when employed by other women, it is a vicious and spiteful act of moral condemnation.
To be fair, the author almost seems able to grasp an intelligent point when discussing the double standard of sensitive men being called sissies, but tries to turn even that into a self-pitying rant against the demonic male. Unfortunately, it was women who would gleefully daub the houses of the disabled men and the conscientous objectors during the first world war with yellow paint. It is the grotesque sexual fetishisation of male aggression that is feeding the increasingly animalistic and violent urban culture of our young males and that in the once peaceful United Kingdom is leading to teenage boys stabbing each other to death on a near daily basis.
I'm sure I could list a far greater number of sexual 'double standards' that work out much more in favour of women than men. A male teacher who has sex with a female pupil is a child molestor who has defiled the girl and deserves a life time of hell in prison. A female teacher who has sex with a male pupil is a 'Sexy Mrs' who has initiated the young man into the world of sex and there is media outrage if she recieves the same jail sentence as a male would. Third world prostitution is a stick feminists use to beat the original sin out of Western men, naturally remaining silent to the thousands of wealthy white women who flock to the Carribean islands to exploit and abuse the poverty stricken 'rent-a-rasta' black male prostitutes (hell there was even a romantic chick flick made about it recently). I could go on - even the supposed double standard of the book's title is rather anachronistic. Women who sleep around are now sexually liberated women whereas promiscuous men are 'users' and sexual predators at risk from false date rape allegations.
The simple-minded flaw in Valenti's argument is the belief that if you remove sexual 'double standards' it follows that you will have a morally fair and equitable sexual code of conduct. Again, if men and women are biologically disposed to find happiness through different (and sometimes competing) sexual behaviours and needs, then gender blind moral codes will invariably punish one sex more than the other. And when feminists like Valenti now have near complete political power to write the sexual rulebook, no prizes for guessing which gender is going to come off the worse.
Perhaps some kind of compromise will be the best we can hope for, even if it leads to the lowest common denominator that possibly Islamic Sharia Law represents. But at least it can be said that when males invent moral codes they tend to do so looking up at the stars. When feminists make moral pronouncements they seem unable to look up from their wombs.
What's wrong with keeping virginity? September 6, 2008
holy smack-down. (Norfolk, VA)
5 out of 59 found this review helpful
I just read the first few pages and my question is this: what's wrong with keeping and valuing our virginity? This practice was done for centuries and now all of a sudden, it's taboo, or unacceptable for a young woman to NOT sleep with anyone.
I have 2 children, a daughter-4, and a son-2. I will be taking my children to purity balls (as mentioned) and integrity balls. The author mentioned the double standard of having young girls pure an men go learn integrity. This is like feeding a cat dog food- you give what is proper and understandable for the child. If my son gets the "integrity" concept over "purity" why wouldn't I teach him that?
The reading does have a certain "snappiness" and it is mildly captivating, I just find it very one-sided and full of the author's opinion, and this was in the first few pages. Personally, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone trying to have or teach morals. This book isn't about the double standard of being called a slut, it's about freedom to do what you want with no repercussion, and that's not real.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 14
|
|
|
|
Return to Math.com | |
