La Mariée by Marc Chagallin
For the sake of elucidating all the furrows and lines drawn in the sand, here's a compilation/playlist of positions and arguments on the hook-up culture and its benefits, drawbacks, and social effects. But first, allow me to show my hand.
I believe gender to be largely a matter of social construction. Specifically, in this day and age, gender norms are communicated to most Americans through media and ad campaigns- we are consumers of gender norms rather than reflective, self-narrating individuals.
Laura Sessions Stepp, like many who are concerned about the hook-up culture, relies on sexist essentialism to support her view that men get more from hook-ups than women. It would be far more interesting if she considered hook-up culture from the perspective of 21st century gender construction- how girls seek to imitate the cultural norms established for men in an effort to prove themselves worthy of respect or power. And, it would be even more interesting to see an analysis of how these male gender norms prevent modern males from experiencing the richness of uncompartmentalized modes of cognition.
THE CRITICS
Those who enumerate the costs or inconsistencies
"9 reasons hook-up culture hurts boys too" by Ryan Sager (Time)
"In hookups inequality still reigns" by Natalie Kitroeff (NYT)
"What is hooking up?" interview with Laura Sessions Stepp (Unhooked)
"Hookup culture run amok" by Ruth Marcus (Real Clear Politics)
"Sexual hook-up culture" (American Psychological Association)
"Sexual assault on campus and the curse of the hookup culture" by Jonathan Zimmerman (L.A. Times)
"For students, hookup culture leaves much to be desired" by Eric Niehaus (The Miami Student)
"Why a real date is better than hooking up" by Jill P. Weber (Psychology Today)
"The college professor changing the way we date" by Cassie Shortsleeve (Shape)
"Time to stop hooking up" by Donna Freitas (Washington Post)
"The hookup elites" by Lisa Wade (Slate)
"Is hooking up bad for young women?" by Elizabeth A. Armstong, Laura Hamilton, and Paula England (Contexts)
"Hook-up culture is good for women, and other feminist myths" by Amy Julia Becker (Christianity Today)
"Hook up feminism" by Emily Esfahani Smith (The New Criterion)
"Does hooking up hurt you?" by Colleen Oakley (Marie Claire)
"Hooking up" by Tom Wolfe (MacMillan)
THE CHEERLEADERS
Those who extol the benefits
"Boys on the side" by Hanna Rosin (The Atlantic)
"Sex on campus: She can play that game, too" by Kate Taylor (NYT)
"#Love: Design for it" by Jordan Crook (TechCrunch)
"Hookup culture", a how-to by Brenna Dilger (UC Highlander)
"Finally someone says it: Hook-up culture is good for women" by Katie J. M. Baker (Jezebel)
"We don't think she should play that game though..." by Jessia A. Joseph (inkblot)
"Hook-up truck: Bay Area's rolling venue for private acts in public" by David DeBolt (Contra Costa Times)
"How hook-up culture is helping women gain power" by Ashley Lutz (Business Insider)
"New poll reveals singles want a Fleet Week Hook Up in the Dugout at Yankee Stadium" (PR Web)
Hookup with Canadians Guide, bearers of market niche
Local Hookup and an endless array of websites that promise you a quick hookup ASAP with pictures of teenage girls that resemble 1970's porn
THE NAY-SAYERS
Those who don't believe the hookup upculture exists in a signficant way
"Another study shows that hookup culture is a myth" by Eliana Dockterman (Time)
"6 reasons the hookup culture is a myth" by Nicole Weaver (Your Tango)
"Radcliffe women have always enjoyed hooking up" by Mitch Wolfe (Huffington Post)
"New study on hooking up shows no sexual sea change" by Brian Alexander (Today Health)
THE INTERESTED PARTIES
Those watching the numbers and taking notes
"Demonizing sex, then trying to get laid: The art of hooking up at CPAC" by Amanda Marcotte (Slate)
The Casual Sex Project, an ongoing study by Zhana Vrangalova
"The sociology of hooking up" by Andy Guess (Inside Higher Education)
"Hanging out, hooking up" by Anna Lockhart (Times Free Press)
"Sex without intimacy: No dating, no relationships" by Brenda Wilson (NPR)
"Tons of people are hooking up with their co-workers" by Martha C. White (Time)
MY PERSONAL FAVORITES
Because it's not the same old drivel
"On hookup culture and an imagined sexual liberation" by J. A. Martino (Feminist Current)
"Sorry feminists, I'm too oppressed to hook up" by Evette Dionne (Policy Mic)
"Hook-up culture's bad rap" by Kate Harding (Young Feminist Wire)
