Slut

At the time of the creation of slut walks, I struggled to put into words the extent to which it was a big fat no for me on any level I could think of. In the end I gave up because it was just too hard and many other people were doing it and let's face it, the atmosphere of especially racial rancour was not conducive to calm rationale.

I don't know how many of you have had the privilege of encountering "male feminist" Hugo *Schwyzer. Now despite not being a radical feminist-not hating, just don't have that kind of instinct (about feminism anyhow)- I've just never understood the point of male feminists. The point has always evaded me.

I can't begin to get why anyone needs to announce their 'maleness' in order to state ideas they connect with as if somehow the latter would somehow be an attack on the former. I quite liked the surrealist leitmotiv when I was younger-that what is really real to us is our dreams and the world of our fantasy and imagination.

I connected with this as what? I'm not even sure, possibly an entity? Certainly I don't remember needing to assert my lady-bits as somehow pertaining to any feelings of connection. The significance of moi, moi-meme, une femme, gets surrealism because that's not like manderstanding, its proper getting it like, or something, would not have formed in my head.

Anyway, even though I've heard of HS, I'm lucky enough not to care one iota about his brand of femanism and thought it superfluous to my understanding of things. So I've skirted his scent 'til now, never say never.

Whodathunkit? He's just gone and touched on why I have always felt the word "slut" has got nothing to do with women therefore the idea of 'reclaiming it' (plz) is a mis-fire.

The genesis of slut is to do with how men's sexuality is directed and when you realise how this affects women, it's unsavoury. Feminists, given who's the central contingent could be in part to blame for this misguided notion of slut/slag etc., being about women.

One of their main techniques being to step into certain assigned notions and roles and shout back. Rather than pointing and saying, this is about you, why not deal with that? Apart from the motive or emotion behind that-a sort of pedestal mentality-it just ended up getting in the way of men examining how they felt about being incubators for the ideas that lead to this characterisation of women.

It always seemed to me, from the moment I found out what it meant to be essentially man hating, despite the extent of mysogny, that was an adjunct to woman's role rather than the end in itself, or as is said by feminists, controlling women's sexuality. That's a given, the purpose of slut seemed to me to be about controlling men's view of themselves, their sexuality and directing its use;

“So you’re saying that when a man comes on a woman’s face, it’s not about making her dirty — it’s about making him feel clean?”

A person can only feel "clean" in this circumstance if they generate dirt. And it is that dirt that dirties women, turning them theoretically into sluts or slags.

It's always felt like something men need to sort out and whilst I can understand Flavia's annoyance. Dirty ole' men and why they need to clean up.

* 3rd time lucky! Meh.