Wednesday, March 2, 2011

How to raise a boyfriend


If there is a book that can be accurately judged by its cover, it is How to Raise a Boyfriend by Rebecca Eckler. Book offers relationship advice based on the idea that men are just like children, desperately in need of raising by women.  This books biggest failure (aside from its gender essentialism) is the horrible advice Eckler gives.  Not only is it biased, sourced exclusively from all things Eckler (her experiences, muffin-waxer, exes, etc.), but it’s dangerous. Recommended raising techniques include lying about low self-esteem, sending passive-aggressive messages, invading privacy, initiating guilt trips, promising sex acts for good behavior, abstaining from sex acts as punishment, and the list goes on. It’s the use of sex that is particularly problematic:
"When women are asked to believe they are “gifting” their sexuality, the pleasure and power in it is lost, and the potential for female sexual agency is removed. Sex is many things to many people, but the last thing it should be is part of a barter system to acquire respect and admiration."
She has a huge following which begs to question, how can people be so accepting of a reductionist and factually incorrect worldview?



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