Review: Female Chauvinist Pigs by Ariel Levy

Ariel Levy's examination of expectations of modern day female sexuality (at least in Western terms) is intriguing and her opinions mostly justified.



Levy's book is about the 'hot' ideal. The playboy-as-teen-icon ideal, the porn star as the ultimate in female liberation. The blonde and large-breasted ideal. The exhibitionist woman who is ready to play, ready for sex, 'that' woman that we see everywhere in our society - that ideal is fast becoming the only outlet of female sexuality.

Raunch culture is Levy's term, the definition of which is the rise of sexuality in our media, and it's perversion of sexuality into a type of commodity.

While Levy has no issue with stripping, or porn, or people gaining a sexual thrill from those things, what she examines is how easily a variety of women conform to that one idea of sexuality. She followed a Girls Gone Wild crew for this book, and the facts she lays out about this experience are all at once expected and frustrating. She examines how many people believe this raunch culture to be the epitome of female liberation - instead of a backwards slide.

Levy makes the point that if women continue to shoe-horn themselves into a one-size-fits-all model, if we deem only 'that' woman as a sexual being, then we are only playing a part in order to attain attention and a sort of misguided self worth. This in essence, shows how far behind our understanding of woman's sexuality really is. The current raunch culture strong-arms women to play a part, in order to satisfy a man and, indeed, other women.

She examines the Sex and the City culture of feminity, where sex acts as a commodity. Where sex is pursued as a hobby rather than a desire-fuelled sexual encounter. Where sex is pursued to attain the veneer of a sexy, free-willed and empowered woman. And that with that veneer, comes self-worth and even status in society.

Another supporting facet of the book is the examination of women who 'act like men', in order to be 'cool', who visit strip clubs and watch porn not to experience any sexual desire, but rather to assume the facade of a woman who enjoys this. To 'be one of the boys', to be the woman who 'gets it' is becoming part of our culture. Shying away from the prim girly girl and focusing on the cool man. Levy examines how this mannification of women, of women wanting to act and be like men, is equal to saying that being a woman is somehow inferior - and I agree with her.

Levy is quick to acknowledge the woman who feels her most sexual with a hair free vagina, who gets a thrill out of exhibitionism - but is trying to make the point that not every woman is that woman, and the more our society and our media only acknowledge this woman as sexual in the spectrum of sexual women, the more women at large are forced to be like that woman and deny their own sexuality.

SEXUAL!

This is an opinion piece, backed by interviews and some data. There is a chapter in which Levy attempts to delve into the trans community, and makes some oddly sweeping implications that women opting for trans surgery are somehow indulging in the mannification of women. I think she missed the point in this area, but it doesn't invalidate the rest of the book.

Also, I know this is a book based on WOMEN and the rise of raunch culture, but I think Levy could have taken a moment to acknowledge that - to a less grievous extent - men have a predetermined role to play in raunch culture as well.

All in all, it's a thought-provoking read with some stunning statistics in regards to things like vaginoplasty and teen pregnancies in it. I really enjoyed it, and I'd look for more from Levy in the future.