Gonad The Barbarian And The Venus Flytrap

6 Pages 1428 Words

Throughout history women have been denied the same basic freedom and rights that men have inherently been given. The right to vote, the right to earn comparable wages, the right to show your face and yes, even the right to have an orgasm openly and freely, independent of male control or judgment. Women’s sexuality has been suppressed and repressed in one form or another for far too long. Pornography is not unlike other areas of society and culture around the world. In “Gonad the Barbarian and the Venus Flytrap” Anne McClintock discusses the history of women as sexual beings and also gives insight into the role of pornography as a means of pleasure, voyeurism and employment for women. McClintock also explores the world of pornography and how it relates to the male ego. The purpose of McClintock’s article is to introduce the reader to the history and the problems associated with women acting as sexual beings and at the same time, examining the role of pornography and its evolution.
McClintock believes that it is narrow-minded to view pornography as the evil of society and the downfall of women’s role as sexual beings (114). To simply classify pornography as an instrument that objectifies women and therefore gives men justification for the ill treatment of women would be ignoring the foundation of some ill conceived beliefs that have existed long before the invention of pornography. McClintock states that the basis of sexism is not rooted in pornography rather, it is rooted in the history of the world and how women have been viewed, better yet, not viewed as sexual beings. McClintock expresses this view of the historical treatment of women by saying “[w]omen’s desire, by contrast, has been crimped to history’s sad museums of corsets, chastity belts, the virginity cult and genital mutilation”(113). Another basis for McClintock’s beliefs of pornography is the existence of male insecurity, homophobia and the exclusion o...