WARNING: the following content is a rant about the sexism inlaced in the mantle story.
*walks onto an empty stage*
I couldn't help myself from getting so irritated reading this story. At first I kept giggling out loud; a random guy appearing out of nowhere, on behalf of an unnamed elf woman is so random it's funny.
But, like so many historical texts, the testing of a woman's "faithfulness" is being called out. The all-mighty, objectified "virginity" is prized over medieval men for some reason that remains unknown to me. The concern of a man's woman only having sex with him (because you know, she's property) grew into an obsessive form of control.
Why do these knight obsess over whether or not "their" women are only having sex with them? They're having sex with other people...so why does that matter?
Examining this whole courtly love theme and being a knight in the time of Arthur...honor always seems to be the underlying factor. Is it simply honor? But how did honor evolve into sex control?
*drops mic*
Well, what about women living under similar conditions in this century? If the women are allowed a voice, how do they answer some of your questions?
ReplyDeleteAre you referring to women being objectified in our current century?
DeleteOr women during King Arthur's time who (if) were allowed to speak freely?
This is similar even today! If a guy has sex with a girl, he is given a pat on the back by his friends. If a girl has sex, her reputation is threatened.
ReplyDeleteYEPP.
DeleteIt's ridiculous how sex evolved into an object; becoming a way to control women. Especially in this story and in the times of King Arthur...
I feel like women during these times felt the same way, but expressed their reactions in more subdued and camouflaged manner.
I think courtly love (on the masculine end) was designed to not work, and set the knights up for a hellish battle to gain a woman's "love" because in a way it balanced out the bullshit women had to go through.
I think this is shown so much today as well. So many men think that women are sex objects or are only here to have sex with ONE man. Yet, there are so many men out here having sex with anything they can stick their penis in. Its ridiculous. But, a man probably wrote this story, thinking that they can do whatever, while women have to act as virginized as possible.
ReplyDeleteI think the biggest problem I had with this wasn't even totally that the women were being shamed for whatever it was that they did (not that it didn't wildly piss me off) but rather that the women were then just shoved in a corner. They're shamed and then pushed to the side where they are shown as sulking. I'm sorry gentlemen, how would you feel if your dirty laundry was aired to the whole court. I don't care that they strayed because basically everyone in that story did, I'm pissed they were treated like shit after it came to light. It's no different today and honestly that's pathetic. It's been some 1500 years and the state of women hasn't actually changed that much. Go society.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all of this, even as a guy. The saddest part is that it IS still an issue in modern society. So since the time of King Arthur, we haven't changed in that view! Equality is now a thing. If guys don't want their sex lives judged, then we can't judge women's either. How essentially every other part of society has changed so drastically yet this fundamental problem still exists is mind boggling.
ReplyDelete