"Gray Rape": A new form of date rape?

With the increasing regularity of casual hookups in our culture, the lines between consent and rape are becoming blurred, giving name to the term "gray rape." Alcohol blurs these lines even further, creating fuzzy memories of the night before. The mix of alcohol and sex creates the question of whether or not the person claiming to have been raped actually was. The article states that women go after sex just as much as men do these days. Casual sex makes it even easier for women to be put in uncomfortable situations with men of the opposite sex.

While it is true that women may say and do things while intoxicated that they would not do when they were sober, it does not mean that they still would wish to give consent to a man attempting to have sex with them. No matter what answer they give, they are not in the right frame of mind to decide whether or not they wish to be having sex. The term rape is being reexamined.

While gray rape is becoming an increasingly common subject of discussion in our culture, the vulnerability and weakness of women who claim to be raped is being ignored and replaced with the idea that a woman "wanted it". With the increase in casual sex in our culture, women who are victims are being increasingly ignored, promoting silence from rape victims who were actually put in bad positions.

Some Say Love...

A relationship is built off of trust. It cannot exist without this. Besides this main component, there are many other things to a relationship. It must have love, care, friendship, and common interests to name a few. The person in the relationship must also put the other person before themselves. In Beyonce's Love On Top, she talks about the man she loves finally putting her first. It is important to have a deep and trusting relationship that puts the other first. Love should also be about being willing to do whatever it takes to make the relationship work if you truly want it to, as illustrated in Ain't No Mountain High Enough. In a relationship, it is also important to give constant reminders to the other person that you are in love with them, whether it is a big or small reminder. This is best demonstrated in Have I Told You Lately by Rod Stewart. When you are a committed relationship, you should love that person no matter what, like Celine Dion sings in My Heart Will Go On. Love can make us do crazy things. We can try very hard to get the attention of a person we love. In Iris, by the Goo Goo Dolls, the singer of the song just wants the person he loves to know who he is, because he is deeply in love with her. Everyone in these songs is on a quest for their soul mate. I believe that everyone does have a soul mate, but we do not always find them. There is also people who can come into your life and still be the one. Soulmate is more of an unrealistic term, but the people who do find theirs are lucky.

Dating: What's the Point?

In our culture today, dating is almost always seen as a casual experience. Most relationships come out of "hook ups", if a relationship even results at all. "Anti daters" believe that dating is just a practice for divorce. I do not agree with this. Although sometimes people are not in a relationship for the right reasons, a relationship is still beneficial. After dating a couple people, a girl or boy starts to realize what they really want in a relationship. This then helps them for the future. Instead of practicing for divorce, they are practicing for a long and beneficial marriage. Along with finding what they want in another, dating helps young people to discover themselves. When dating a person, you should be comfortable with who you are and not act differently. A person needs the experience of dating in order to realize this. Although dating is beneficial, it is hard to attain a relationship that will help us to experience these things. With the constant pressure to conform to the norm in society, people everywhere are "hooking up" and missing out on what could truly form into a special bond.

Mission Statement

In order to have a mission statement, I must be able to live out all of the promises and goals stated in it. My mission statement is to put a smile on faces. Whatever my future career is, although I do not know what it is yet, I hope to bring joy to others through it. No one is perfect, and neither am I. I realize that I will make mistakes in life, but I will promise to learn from those mistakes as life goes on. When I am older I will be successful. In my mind, success is not having money in power, it is living a life that is somehow beneficial to others and to be happy while doing it. Wherever my future takes me, I promise that I will try my best to spread the important lessons I have learned from others onto new people. When I am older, I want to look back on my life in a positive way. I want to have success and change the lives of others.

Miss Representation

From both watching Miss Representation and reading the article, it is apparent that our society is subjected to increasing sexualization. As the years go by, the clothes that women wear and the way that they act in order to impress men has become more alarming. Although it is a sad reality, I can say that as a teenage girl I feel the pressure to go along with these trends. As women, we are pressured to conform to what is now the norm in order to please others. It has become a constant competition among everywhere.

In my everyday life, I constantly look at pictures of beautiful women in magazines, on the internet, and on the television. I can not help but feel unattractive and constantly find myself comparing what I look like to these images. Women everywhere feel compelled to work to have the same body type, beautiful skin, and scandalous clothes as these women. Men expect all women to look like this and as these stereotypes have changed, there standards have increased dramatically.

If women are constantly trying to impress men, it will affect how they dress not only socially, but also in everyday life. If the only way that women can get attention is to dress inappropriately, then their importance in the workplace will begin to decrease, and they will become even more objectified. After having the experience of reading this article and watching this movie, I feel less inclined to dress like these celebrity women and more inclined to be myself. I realize that the women who look like this are often either unhappy or it is not their real appearance. I now appreciate myself and my friends and love myself for not what I look like but how confident I feel.

Sources of My Identity

When i first walked into the hallways of Mount Saint Joseph Academy, I had no idea what to expect. I was afraid to start a new school with none of my old friends from my grade school. I feared that everyone would already have their friends and that no one would want to take time out of their day to get to know me. I became increasingly anxious as the first day of school approached. But I was wrong. The Mount has shaped me as the person I am today. I cannot imagine myself attending any other school. My experience there has shaped me to become a confident and caring person. The amount of opportunities I have received here make me realize how extremely blessed I am to attend such a place. The people I have met here are the kind of people one would hope to remember for the rest of their lives.

Another thing that has shaped the person I am today is my family. They act as a support system for me. Whenever I need advice or guidance, my parents and siblings are there for me. I am fortunate enough to have siblings that I am so close with. My brother and sister are two of my best friends. My parents have provided me with a loving and caring environment that has affected me positively. Their values and standards have helped put my life on the right track. Without my family, I would not feel as loved and supported as I am. 

Finally, sports have shaped me. Soccer and lacrosse have given me important leadership and teamwork skills. I have learned to work together with others and realized that sometimes in order to achieve a goal you need the help of others because doing something alone is not always an option. Along with the skills I have developed, I also have formed great friendships with my teammates. I learn something new and different from each one of them. From being around such amazing people I am able to help myself become a better person. Without sports, I would not be as confident and open to ideas as I am today.