Duke University graduate Karen Owen served up a new kind of gender bender when she wrote and circulated a 42-page PowerPoint mock sex "thesis" about her undergraduate sexual encounters. Owen may not have fully understood the can of worms she was opening when she naively e-mailed her thesis to a few friends. The thesis, first published on the websites Jezebel and Deadspin, went viral and was swiftly lampooned by the mainstream media. Hailed by some as a feminist champion and others as a disgrace to Duke University, Owen has certainly sparked an intriguing public debate, particularly on the blogosphere. Yet even as the fallout from one college graduate's published sexual exploits goes viral, the vivacious public conversation it has occasioned speaks to importance of recognizing the gender issues that still persist. Owen's thesis also raises deeper concerns in our society about the rise in the college hook-up culture and its implications on health and safety.
Owen's thesis, which she titled, "An education beyond the classroom: excelling in the realm of horizontal academics," summarily ranks the sexual performance of 13 Duke athletes. Owens grades each athlete, giving a cumulative "raw score" based on evaluations such as "physical attractiveness," "athletic ability," "talent" and "size." She also lists the "memorable moments," "pros," and "cons" of each sexual partner.
The media attention directed at Owen over the past few weeks has highlighted the double standard that exists in society toward sexually explicit females. Should not Owen be able to glorify her sexual encounters without facing public ridicule? "Sex lists" have circulated through fraternities across college campuses for decades, but none have received the special attention her thesis has garnered since it was published. The reason is evident: Society is more critical of women who have casual sex than men. Far more negative and demeaning terminology exists for a promiscuous female than for a licentious male. Women like Owen who have no-attachment sex are "sluts" or "whores," whereas men with multiple partners are "players," "pimps," "Cassanovas" or "studs," far more agreeable adjectives. What a concept, the "male slut!" No one went around dubbing Tiger Woods a whore.
In her defense, Owen seems to have flipped the tables for once, and many do not like it. She has publicly subjected men to the type of sexual objectification women have faced for decades. Magazines, movies, television and music have historically objectified women, emphasizing a women's body and physical attractiveness over her intelligence. If Owen were a man, her sex thesis would have never received the type of scrutiny it has been subjected to over the past few weeks. In fact, most of the time in our society, sex sells. Former New York governor Eliot Spitzer, for example - who reportedly paid prostitutes thousands of dollars for sex - recently debuted as co-host of CNN's "Parker Spitzer" show.
The Owen's thesis also sheds light on what she described as the "Alpha-male dominated world of Duke Lacrosse hookups." The college hook-up culture is not a new phenomenon and is certainly not limited to Duke athletes or Duke University. What Owen relates in her sexual "research" is an honest account of the pervasive college sex culture of which she is just as much a victim as a perpetrator. Owen not only describes, but intimately details the get-drunk, have-sex attitude present on most college campuses. While Owen should not have included the names of her sexual partners, her report highlights the significant implications of the casual sex attitudes common among many undergraduates. HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases are just one corollary of this sex culture on campus.
The emotional impact from frequent casual sex is another. The hook-up culture has also directly contributed to the high incidence of date-rape and sexual assault on college campuses. Rapes and sexual assaults tend to occur at higher rates for college-age women, affecting approximately one in four females. Owen herself describes a classic instance of what some would term date rape in her evaluation of "Subject 5," sayiing, "Although I was lying next to someone whom I had never found particularly attractive, I had somehow, in my black-out state, still managed to crawl in bed with a Duke athlete. Furthermore, judging from our unclothed condition it was fairly obvious that we had done more than merely pass out."
Owen most likely did not set out to embroil herself and her alma mater in a sex scandal, but nevertheless, her "study" has gained national attention, sparked talks of book contracts and movie deals. One can hardly argue in favor of Owen's expos
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