Of Patriarchal Rationality and Chauvinistic Sanity
by Rukhsana Shama | December 27, 2012 at 9:28 PM
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As I post this here, the news is that an assault victim from Patiala has committed suicide on the account that she was being pressurized by the police to get married to the culprit or have a financial settlement.
Skyfall (the new James Bonds) movie is another hit and of course a couple of other girls got this great ‘honour’ to have associated their names with 007. The other day a very apt cartoon with the caption ‘Imagine how socially unacceptable the character of 007 would be if it were a female agent, for sleeping with a different man in every movie’ was in circulation on Facebook. So folks, that is how it is, let’s accept it and face it, once and for all; liberal, no liberal, western, eastern, leftists, rightists…we have different lenses for women and men.
When James Bond, bonds with series of different women, it is because it is the nature of his job, he is doing it for his country, for supremacy of a noble cause; if a woman does it, she would instantly be judged to the extent of being called a ‘whore’. Having said this, I do not imply that men are not judged, they are, but the status they enjoy in the society helps them cope in those few times when they are judged.
When this girl was gang raped in New Delhi recently, generally public asked, what was she doing in the bus at that time of the night? Why was she with a male friend? And this is not it, each time violence happens with a women, the first question comes to the mind of people, in general is; what did she do to deserve this? This very thing implies that a woman does something ‘wrong’ to deserve such fate. Why?
She violates the code of stepping out in night…that’s her fault
She was wearing 'revealing' dress… she called for it
She went to pub with male friends… she wanted it
WOW…
What lenses we have, full of patriarchal rationality and chauvinistic sanity…WOW!!!
