Fifty Shades Against Gender Neutrality

E. L. James’s novel Fifty Shades of Grey is now the best selling book in British history, has sold more than 100 million copies globally, and has spawned two sequels, along with an upcoming film adaptation. This success has been surprising, in that the books are unabashedly pornographic, arising out of erotic Twilight fan fiction. Moreover, they are targeted at women, an audience often ignored in discussions on the effects of pornography. Continue Reading »

An Apology for the Catholic Church’s Patriarchy

Patriarchy refers to rule by men. It is an accusation often levelled at the Catholic Church, an institution led by a class of male-only priests distinct in status. Priests decide on disagreements over dogma, administer God’s forgiveness of sins through the sacrament of confession, and institute the Eucharist at Mass—some of the most important Church activities. For most people, this is patriarchal and unwelcome in our age of gender equality. Continue Reading »

Fifty Shades of Pretty

Inspired by this photo spread from Seventeen magazine:  1. Blistered Red: This look is really what we as an industry are all about: ensuring that, like sex, beauty involves as much suffering and humiliation as possible. Once you have a stranger rip hot wax off your legs, eyebrows, and . . . . Continue Reading »

Women and Teaching in Evangelicalism

The new president of Cedarville University, a Christian college in Ohio, has decided that no woman shall teach a man in any Biblical studies. This reflects a long-running debate within Evangelicalism (see here and here) over gender complementarianism and the role of women. To be . . . . Continue Reading »

Oh, Mr. Rochester —

Has any woman ever sought holy orders purely on the grounds of having read and loved Jane Eyre?Clergy CoutureWhat do you call this kind of thing, anyway? My husband suggests the term frossock. [Rating: . . . . Continue Reading »