Cultural representation of female sexuality

Cultural representation of female sexuality

Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Analysis...........................................................................................................................................2
Institutions and ideologies socially construct and prescribe women’s sexuality........................2
Women challenging the old notions and creating new scenarios................................................4
Influence of social location on the experience and response of women......................................5
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
References........................................................................................................................................7

Introduction
Cultural representation of the female sexuality has a very stereotyped structure which only
follows a predefined structure by the patriarchal society. Women, who are often known as the
second sex, have been oppressed and influenced by the rules and laws of the male dominated
society. In various artistic genres, such as art, literature, theatre women have been objectified
sexually. They are portrayed with distinguished feminine attributes of a gentle woman who is
soft spoken, caring, gentle, able to bear kids and raise them, obedient of their father or husband
and so on. Otherwise they were described as villainous characters having an evil heart; they were
considered as schemers, gold diggers and wicked. This study focuses on the impact of the
patriarchal society on women both in the past and in present.
Analysis
Institutions and ideologies socially construct and prescribe women’s sexuality
Women are often referred to as the ‘second sex’ by various social institutions. Women are taught
several social constraints from their childhood regarding their behavior, their lifestyle choices
and even the way they should be treated by various social institutions such as their family, their
church, and their medical institutions and even by their academic institutions (Richardson, 2016).
Women are constrained by these ideologies and are forced to live being objectified in every step
since the beginning of humankind (Snook, 2017).