Gender roles and romance novels
By Jennifer Markham, Contributor
As most popular book series do, it felt as though it were overnight that everyone started talking about the 50 Shades series like they were three books that would change your life. For such a popular book though, I couldnât figure out why I didnât see anyone reading itâneither on transit nor in coffee shops. That is, until I picked it up myself. All of sudden, the hushed voices and sheepish smiles all made sense.
The book graphically describes a dominant and submissive relationship in steamy detail. I was home alone and I still closed the blinds, I was blushing so badly. I canât even admit to reading it with a straight face, and only people who have read it can join the exclusive club of âOh I knowâŠâ
But more importantly than whether the books are good or bad, itâs essential to think critically about why these books became so popular.
Despite all the progress weâve made in equality since the 1960s, women are raised from a young age to suppress their sexuality. As teenagers, we navigate the fine line between sexy and slutty, and by the time weâre adults, weâve figured out that being promiscuous is only socially acceptable if youâre a male. He who sleeps around is a player; meanwhile, if a girl overtly gets around the block, sheâs a floozy.
Same goes with watching porn: itâs socially accepted that the large majority of the male population knows how to delete a computerâs history. Itâs just not as common to hear a woman openly admit to doing the same, and thatâs why Harlequin romances and erotica make so much money. But does a graphic sex scene in a book stimulate our brain (and other places for that matter) any differently than a sex scene in a pornographic film? Doubtful. But itâs our social norms that define whatâs acceptable.
Letâs face it: these books certainly arenât extraordinary because of the unique storylineâbondage and discipline aside. The writing style itself isnât at all unique either, and some of the words seem to be thrown into sentences in a jarring manner, as if someone picked up a thesaurus and picked out a couple words at random to seem more educated.
Whether or not youâre going to read the books, or let your girlfriend read them, itâs important to constantly question prescribed gender roles, and who defines them.
