“When a man loves a woman, she is not the object of his affections. She is the subject.”
–Derek Q. Sanders
A woman is not an object. She is far too superior. An object is a material thing that can be seen or touched (emphasis on thing). It is an item, an inanimate fixture devoid of personhood.
A woman should never be reduced to such a lowly status that is only fit for things without life or inherent value. She that produces life itself should never be robbed of that which gives meaning to life.
Sadly, she is. The word object is the root of the word objectify. It is to ignore a woman’s finer attributes for pixels and print images.
The most common images of a woman, in the greater context of popular culture, only favors those parts of her that bring pleasure to the eyes first then, that which gratifies the carnal desires of those that control those images (usually men).
The woman is presented in featured pieces (body parts), stripped of all her natural splendor, reduced to a mere object, an ornament that accentuates something viewed as having greater value than itself.
An object has no real value apart from the framework in which it is placed for the grand satisfaction of its handlers. Women are routinely dehumanized in the mainstream.
They become descriptions rather than real persons. They are known by the categories they are placed in by words that identify them by degrees of desirability, words like hottie, dimepiece, sexy, and a plethora of other word choices that add flattery to degradation.
Women are used as props to evoke certain emotions that manipulate us into desired responses. They are the primary objects used to influence purchases of various products from household goods to fast food to vehicles.
There is nothing wrong with the selling of goods and services, just as there is nothing wrong with recognizing a woman’s physical beauty. These things only become an issue when, as common in popular culture, they represent all that is seen to be valuable about a woman.
Her value centers on how she looks and the ability of others to benefit from her appearance in a monetary or sexual way or any other way that is a detriment to her well-being. She has become an object.
When a woman is the subject not the object, the focus is on who she is as a person. She is not a fixture that draws attention because of its to appeal to the base nature of men. Instead, she is honored.
She is loved. She is known intimately. Inanimate objects cannot experience the joy of love nor the feeling of true intimacy. Only real people can know and be known at such deeper levels.
To experience true intimacy is to be known beyond the surface level. Intimacy is not a random sex act, nor a superficial indulgence that serves as a means to draw a man and woman together by a carnal act.
Intimacy calls for a woman to be the subject of a man’s deep affection, sacrifice, and commitment. A man and woman can never experience the depths of love without true intimacy. Neither can an object know true love. A woman is truly loved when she is the subject, not an object.
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