5:50 PM |
Author: Siva
Shika Dalmia of WSJ argues for a sexual revolution in India. Not in the usual way, she wants more freedom to have sex before marriage. The key parts of the argument:
Today the average marriage age in India has risen to 22 for women and 26 for men. Yet virginity and chastity—especially for women, but also men—remain prized virtues.
Unlike rape and sex-selective abortion, which represent a genuine devaluing of women, sexual harassment in India is, I believe, an expression not of the power of Indian men but of their helplessness. It's a pathetic attempt to have a sexual encounter, no matter how meaningless and evanescent. Its real cause is free-floating male libido with no socially acceptable outlet.
What would work? Nothing short of transforming India's puritanical culture and giving men and women more freedom to forge sexually mature relationships outside of marriage.Very interesting argument. The downside however is the keyword in the last line: "mature". There is no model for this. She touches upon the problem:
But the process will take generations. Given India's starting point in ancient traditions, one can hope that it will result in a balance healthier than what has unfolded in the over-sexualized West.It will be an interesting study to plot how the incidence of rape relates to average age of marriage.
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