Slut Shamers, Cockroaches of the Internet
It should come as no surprise that women experience harassment on the internet. Through the disguise of anonymous usernames hateful and misogynistic insults can be hurled at whim by the “trolls” that get pleasure from tearing down a women’s self-esteem. When insults revolve around a woman’s sexuality or sexual promiscuity they are typically known as “slut-shaming”. Due to the over-abundance of slut shaming occurring through social media, some would think that a woman’s sexual freedom is being policed and limited; and to an extent this is true. However, women are now more than ever overcoming slut shaming and taking control of their bodies. In fact through the connectivity of social media and the internet women have reclaimed the term “slut” and have come together to overcome and destroy slut shaming.
Women do not get to experience the same sexual freedoms that men do,though, through progressive social media use the idea of women being equally sexual beings is becoming normalized. Nicki Minaj is a famous rapper, known for capitalizing on her assets, to say the least. Besides having impressive talents and an eye for business opportunities, she also combats slut shaming. Her music video for her song Anaconda received a lot of criticisms for being too sexual , her response being “I went overboard with the video to show that I’m not going to hide. And those big-booty dancers I have, they’re not going to hide. Black girls should feel sexy, powerful and important too.” Minaj also contributes to Amber Rose’s Slut Walk foundation, which combats slut shaming, double standards, and helps sexual assault victims (Anglis). Minaj has a prominent social media presence which normalizes her sexy style and encourages girls to be confident in their sexuality. The foundation reclaims the term “Slut” and uses it to empower women to overcome the gender based obstacles that stand before them.
Again, social media is a breeding ground for slut shaming, for instance Miley Cyrus received over 306,000 tweets per minute during her 2013 VMA performance, most shamed her for her seductive style of dancing (Menza). Not only through Twitter, slut shaming occurs though Instagram, Facebook, and even Snapchat. The argument here is not that slut shaming has been eradicated through social media, in fact it is quite the opposite. The congregation of women (and men) tired of seeing post after post filled with condemning ideals has caused people to actively use social media to put a stop to slut shaming. These groups of individuals have been able to use the connectivity that comes with the internet to be able to constitute a clear and united voice with many goals. To spread acceptance, encourage people to become comfortable with themselves, and stop slut shaming, among other things. The website, Stopslut.org, is aimed at not only stopping slut shaming but also rape culture as a whole “Using a revolutionary play, a book and storytelling-based activism workshops, StopSlut aims to transform rape culture into a culture of CARE– communication, accountability, respect and empathy”.
Rape culture also plays a major role within the realm of the internet and is a key factor when it comes to slut shaming. Looking at current events, after the results of the 2016 election were announced and people were disappointed that Donald Trump was the President to be, they turned to their best weapon, social media. Trump is often associated, infamously, for his “Grab her by the pussy” comment thus his ability to still be elected is thought to be a result of our inherent rape culture in the United States. A man that has clearly stated consent is not something he values highly when it comes to sexual advances, was still thought to be a suitable world leader for our country. Rape culture often minimizes the seriousness of rape and sexual assault and perpetuates the idea that women are sexual objects to be lusted after and even “grabbed” without concern to their comfort or safety. Protests voicing dissatisfaction with the electoral college’s decision for Trump were organized via Facebook pages, Instagram posts, and the twitter-sphere. Hashtags like #antitrump, #nevertrump, and #dumptrump all brought the people who were against Trump (for various reasons including racism and homophobia) together to voice their concerns. One of the biggest concerns being his treatment of women and perpetuation of rape culture.
Slut shaming is not a new concept, shunning women for being sexual has been commonplace for centuries. Lewis Mark Webb sums it up best when he says (in reference to comparing slut shaming historically to modern day) “the Roman Republic with recent cases on the Internet, and I maintain that the focus of this slut-shaming, namely sexual virtue, has remained the same over time, but that the unregulated nature of the Internet has increased its scope and impact.” The magnitude seen through the internet is rather unique; people are not afraid to say inappropriate things online because there are no consequences for it. That is, until now. People are getting tired of hearing misogynistic and dated thoughts one after the other and the convenience of anonymity has also given them the ability to type right back. The internet has started to change from a place where slut shaming can bloom, into a battlefield where intellectual logic is used to combat the backwards rhetoric that has overstayed its welcome.
Rowan Counterintuitive 
It should come as no surprise that women experience harassment on the internet.
Through the disguise of anonymous usernames hateful and misogynistic insults can be hurled at whim by the “trolls” that get pleasure from tearing down a women’s self-esteem.
When insults revolve around a woman’s sexuality or sexual promiscuity they are typically known as “slut-shaming”.
Due to the over-abundance of slut shaming occurring through social media, some would think that a woman’s sexual freedom is being policed and limited; and to an extent this is true.
However, women are now more than ever overcoming slut shaming and taking control of their bodies.
In fact through the connectivity of social media and the internet, women have reclaimed the term “slut” and have come together to overcome and destroy slut shaming.
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I do not understand how women do not get the same sexual freedoms as men when a decent amount of the majority of females’ pictures that they post show more skin than men, and most often are commented on with compliments from both sexes. How negatively certain people choose to react is on them, but they definitely have equal sexual freedom at the least, and sometimes are even encouraged to show more skin to prove they are comfortable in their own skin.
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While I think you are entitled to your own opinion, I did not read about many facts in your argument. Arguments should be based on facts, not opinions.
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who exactly is denying women from sexual freedom please be a little more clear on that. show more facts that prove your statement to be accurate rather then basing your ideas based off your own beliefs
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I think your topic is really strong but I think it would benefit from elaborating more on the counterarguments. I would bring up at least one of the strongest counterarguments against slut-shaming and dispute it so that those people will be more willing to hear your argument. I liked how you talked about Trump because it shows that slut-shaming is evolving and is still an issue today.
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You jump from slut shaming to rape culture back to slut shaming. I say to just reorganize the paragraphs so that it flows together.
BUT: I do like how you ended the essay by stating that, “The internet has started to change from a place where slut shaming can bloom, into a battlefield where intellectual logic is used to combat the backwards rhetoric that has overstayed its welcome.”
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I believe that you should focus on your opinion instead of actual facts , you can tell that you were really anger in certain parts while you were writing this essay.
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I know what you trying to say but however there is 2 sides to this. Not one, you also be concern for men too. Try to make it more clear.
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You have a good argument with good reasoning behind it, however you should reword some of your work so it sounds more like facts, than an opinion.
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You the beginnings of a very solid essay here. However, you took a while to get to the meat of the essay- your argument against a rebuttal. I’m all for praising Nicki Minaj, she’s great, but is this really the place in your paper to do so? I feel like the sections praising women for being “slutty” belong somewhere later, after you have defined what rebuttal you’re trying to refute.
“The internet has started to change from a place where slut shaming can bloom, into a battlefield where intellectual logic is used to combat the backwards rhetoric that has overstayed its welcome.” is the closest thing in here to a thesis, and it’s the last sentence of your paper. This should come much, much earlier, and all the evidence you provide (like that mentioned above) should come after it. So, as a whole, this is kind of a backwards paper. You need to START with your claim, and then support it, not the other way around. But I like what you’re saying. You’re getting there, but keep revising.
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Your argument I think is a valid one but what comes up as your reader is that I think it would do you well to use counter arguments to your advantage. By bringing up the counter arguments you will be able to address them and put them in place rather then leaving it up to me as the reader to think you were completely biased and not looking at it from both spectrums.
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I like were you are going with your argument but i believe that you should state more claims and solid facts than your own opinion. I also believe that you should rearrange your paragraphs so that your topic is not jumping back and fourth.
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I really like where you are going with this essay and your argument comes across very strong. I feel however you need to more clearly explain in the first paragraph about what slut shamming is, as i left reading this understanding that it is bad and its about the breakdown of a women but still a little blurry. I really like the use of trump’s negative comment to show how it is still relevant today. maybe find a case of slut shaming that does not involve a celebrity to show how it is still happening now outside of the general everyday media.
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My problem is that the first paragraph does not really state a thesis or bring up something to rebut. The title makes me believe that the argument is about the effects of internet trolls upon women based around their sexuality, but the first paragraph dances around this. You talk about what slut shaming is, who does it, and how women are responding. However, you do not establish something you are trying to counter. If I were writing on this topic, I would start my first paragraph describing why people slut shame. For starters, that people may consider how a woman dresses as indecent, inappropriate, etc. After that, I would make it clear that this is not right, and then go into why slut shaming is wrong and why what is deemed indecent is not necessarily so.
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I think your topic is very strong. You make a bold claim that women are harassed on the internet. Yet, I think it would be more effective if you related your topic to something else, such as the negative connotation regarding homosexual individuals. Gay people are sometimes referred to as queers or faggots. This relation could make people understand your point. In my paper, I make a claim about suicide in law enforcement, but I make no relation to suicide in another line of work. If I related this to an occupation with low suicide rates, my thesis would become stronger. Do you see where I am going with this? You are clearly defending women, so find another area where hate crime on the internet is just as bad.
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As i begin to read the first draft, i start with the title and then the first paragraph trying to understand what slut shamming is but i could not find out from the beginning. Reading the whole argument, i like where you are headed with this and i can see where it is going to turn out to be. One thing i can say is that is seems you are using your opinion a lot instead of adding more stronger cit able claims which you could add some more of. A good way of finishing this strong essay would be to start with your claim and then support it the rest of the way.
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This is a very interesting topic and will stir up a lot of controversy. Men and women are going to have much different views on this topic. I think there is line you could potentially cross to hurt someones feelings in this topic. I think maybe you should get a little closer to this line to make the story more intense. I would have picked a side on how I felt about the topic instead of just talking about what the slutshaming website was all about. I almost felt as if you were trying to advertise the website.
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I like your example using Nicki Minaj because it clearly identified how she combats “slut shaming.” I am confused though on what you are rebutting because you mention how slut shaming is being combatted and give hope to the end of slut shaming, but then you mention how it is growing and will continue to exist because of people like Trump. Basically, clarify which side you agree with first, then state your rebuttal clearly using transition words to show where you are beginning the rebuttal in the essay. I don’t understand the inclusion of Trump, but maybe if you organize the info, it will make more sense. Good luck!
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Dublin517, what is the rebuttal argument that you are trying to disprove? This essay seems like you are just providing support for your own counterintuitive argument, which is good, but is not the assignment. Find out what are your opponents’ arguments against your original argument, and then find evidence to disprove said arguments. Look into their mindsets, and then completely shut down their reasoning.
Make sure to add more facts to support your side, and make sure they each have enough evidence. You can add your own opinions, but make them minimal, as the facts need to take center stage. You don’t want your opponents to find cracks in your argument through your personal opinions. So basically, make sure that your minimal opinions are directly tied to the facts and the evidence.
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You have a strong opening paragraph. You state major points and claim. Good. Try to connect them. Make sure that they all have meaning turns your claim. More statistics would also help your argument grow stronger. I do like your view on celebrities, but maybe make some claims about everyday women and how they view/experience your argument. It would make a more realistic and relatable argument.
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The arguments you make have no underlying backbone other than more claims that don’t have elaborations. For the claims you have elaboration, you only show some events that have controversy on both sides already or something as irrelevant as Nikki Minaj to prove a point.
There is rarely any instance where an artist’s as an example can be concrete proof for a cause.
A rebuttal’s main purpose should be to completely shut down and prove the holes of the opposing side of the arguement. But you didn’t do that; to combat the opposing sides logic and counterpoints (which you did explicitly not provide) you just restated the same circular logic over and over again. It would be very beneficial to find claims and events that only have one way to look at it that proves a point. Not highly controversial events that can be argued for either side and nitpick the viewpoints that have no true merit.
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I like the topic and you made some very good points, but the essay jumps back and forth between slut shaming and rape culture. I understand they are intertwined, but rape culture came out of no where in the third paragraph. The first paragraph however was very strong and to the point. I like the notable people used for this kind of topic, but there is no strong support or evidence. Numbers and statistics would make this essay a lot better.
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The writer should be unbiased and writing an essay based on his own beliefs and not the facts will be an injustice for the reader.
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