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Is a woman a 'slut' if she has one-night stands?

In many cultures, sexual inexperience of a woman is considered valuable, while the opposite is often true for a man.

Implications to Other Questions

Is abstinence-only sex education effective?
Are double standards acceptable in dating?

If you believe B then possibly you believe not A

Is casual sex morally acceptable?

Experts and Influencers

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Agree

Experts In Seduction

Heartiste Pickup Artist

Agree

The same goes for sluts. A man who sleeps with many women gets high fives from his buddies and sexual interest from girls who can’t help their burning loins. But girls who sleep around are socially ostracized, used by men and shunned by women. It has always been and it will always be as long as a woman has 400 eggs to a man’s nearly infinite number of sperm.

The Nature is Nasty Pitch

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13 Apr 2007 Source

Disagree

Experts In Feminism

Jessica Valenti Feminist Activist

Disagree

...I think the stud/slut [double standard is the worst] and that’s why I wanted it on the cover [of my book] because I think that it relates to so many other forms of discrimination, it hits women the hardest. I think the stud/slut thing is behind a lot of reproductive rights limitations, I think it’s behind a lot of violence against women, and this kind of fear of female sexuality and need to control it at all costs. And also I was called a slut in high school so it was also just personal.

The Personal Pitch

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29 Jun 2008 Source

Sub-Arguments Of This Expert:
Is casual sex morally acceptable?
Agree

Experts In Entertainment

Christina Aguilera Singer

Disagree

If you look back in history it's a common double standard of society. The guy gets all the glory the more he can score while the girl can do the same and yet you call her a whore. I don't understand why it's okay [that] the guy can get away with it and the girl gets named. [lyrics from "Can't Hold Us Down"]

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26 Aug 2003 Source

Jessica Alba Actress, Celebrity, Beauty Icon

Disagree

... I don’t think a girl’s a slut if she enjoys sex. I could have a one-night stand, and I’m the kind of girl who looks over in the morning and is like, Do you really have to be here? I don’t need to cuddle and do all that stuff because I know what it is and I don’t try to make it more. I feel like a lot of women try to make it into more, so they don’t feel so bad about just wanting to have sex. I don’t really have a problem with wanting sex. Never have. ...

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25 Mar 2005 Source

Comments

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0 Points Preciosa 13 Jun 2012 Stance on Question: Disagree

Society has been so wrong. Its so simple really...women are not sluts if they have multiple partners. Women biologically multiorgasm and her body was made to be able to do this. So they need to sleep around to satisfy their sexual and bodily needs. Men orgasm just once and get weak cant handle more than one women at a time. Women can handle a gang bang so they should go for it if they want. They were made for it. So when men are are to please a women over and over then she wouldnt need to go elsewhere. So really men are the sluts because they were designed to come once with one partner. When they go get multi partners they are just being greedy and thus making them sluts. But women have an excuse to do this and should be praised. Men dont have an excuse they got one orgasm.

0 Points Laura Valencia 28 May 2012 Stance on Question: Disagree

Quote: It has always been and it will always be as long as a woman has 400 eggs to a man’s nearly infinite number of sperm.
(Heartiste)
In each sexual encounter, a woman does not lose an egg. Is in each menstruation period when an egg is lost, so having a lot of sexual intercourse is not related with loosing eggs.

If loosing eggs or sperm was immoral, mastrubation in men is immoral because they lose millions of potential eggs, more than one egg lost in a natural menstruation. Also: Menstruating, wich is a natural event, would be immoral. You cannot mix natural events with morality that easily.

Please, dont throw arguments if you don't know science.

0 Points Alexander 14 Jul 2012 General Comment

Yes this go for both male and females If a man sleeps around he is a whore if A woman sleeps around she is a whore I lose respect either way I don't care what gender the person is I lose respect for people in a sense who sleep around or have slept around Sex is special it is not a game or just for fun thrilling How can a woman let a man put his penis inside of her when she does not even know him that well? AND how can a man put his penis in some woman when he does not know her that well?! FOR ME I would never do that do such intimate things with someone I barely know I have to like the person for who he/she Is to be able to touch them!!!!!!!!!!!

0 Points Anonymous 17 Jun 2010 General Comment

I like Roissy's argument, or more precisely, I am amused by his argument. It does make sense that the double standard would come from a biological perspective, and, as Nutz pointed out, reproduction can take a toll on women to a far greater extent than on men; however, the 'women only have so many eggs' part is somewhat flawed. It is true that while men have many sperm, women have very few eggs, but a women doesn't really, for the lack of a better term, 'waste' eggs as men 'waste' sperm. They have no real control over the use of their eggs as that process is driven by hormones once a month.

0 Points Nutz 31 May 2010 Stance on Question: Agree

I've got to agree with Roissy. Sluts vs studs is a classic example of a natural biologically reasonable form of double standard between the genders. Men have billions of sperm to spread around, so it behooves them to mate with as many women as possible. It's a primal drive to do so and it's rewarded favorably if a man pulls it off because women are the gate keepers. Not all men are able to attain this feat which is biologically driven so the few who do are looked at in a favorable light. Women on the other hand only have so many eggs and the ramifications of reproduction so taxing that they couldn't afford to mate like men could. The ones who did were historically seen as renegades playing with fire, so to do so was stigmatized at an early time in human history. And for good practical reason.

Mother nature is not a feminist.

2 Points Jacob 01 Jun 2010 Stance on Question: Neutral

I agree with Nutz from a biological standpoint. Simultaneously, I'm not sure that this standpoint is completely acceptable on its own when all of human experience, human being, and society is taken into account. The controversy itself supports this viewpoint. Regardless, socially I think both men and women should be considered sluts if they are promiscuous just by definition of the word. Whether being a "slut" is a good or bad thing is a different issue rhetorically. I personally believe that a man or woman can have multiple partners and be a "good" slut if the experience is sincere, just as someone could be a "bad" slut(even perhaps having less partners than others) with insincere experiences. What is considered sincere or insincere is debatable but beyond this conversation.

Obviously it is almost humorous to talk about good and bad sluts... but I hope my point came across

1 Point Christopher Magic 09 Jan 2012 Stance on Question: Neutral

It all depends on how extreme this sluttiness is but surely people understand the logistivs here. Right? A woman,lets say a 5,not ugly or hot is horny...maybe recently dumped and wants to feel better,forget. She walks up to a 100 guys and ask if they want to have sex...about 75 70 90 guys wil say yes. A woman who is horny and on the prowl will always get satisfaction and physical interaction if she wants it,just has to snap her fingers. Most women are of course somewhat picky,sometimes going for the good looking guy,turns out his penis isnt all that...ah well,it works. goes home with an ugly dissapointed,pulls downs his pants...hello! A woman will never have to go mental and bite her nails off from not getting any.

You take a good looking guy who just walks up to a 100 random women.He asks the same question....between 2 and 7 girls will say yes to his proposal.That is making it as basic and biological as possible....a man will without a big wallet most often have to make an effort to get a woman in the sack. women choose men,not the other way around. When I tried my girlfriendtest,which is very naive but essentially after getting to know her asking about number of partners,thus trying to avoid spanding my life with someone who has been very easy to get in the sack,I realized that numbers often were shaved,even if it wasnt high or something to be embarrassed about. Those I caught lying all said,"I wanted to come off as better,purer or more of the kind of women I FEEL I am today...I had some crazy years in my teens."

So most women will have had a slutphase at some point,maybe after being harshly dumped or just enjoying mutiple partners. Now,its not "cool" for a guy to try to bang as many chicks as possible but surely you understand why a woman who makes the decision to let guys stick it in too easy,too often,too different penises.It is not attractive.

If women were more upfront with sexual needs and pasts and demystified everything and ended the charade,it would be so much better. A woman saying she has been with 5 guys when its 16 for instance...why am I pissedAhigh number?Nooo...cause she lies to me and truth is the foundation for anything real."What he doesnt know wont hurt him" only works if he never finds out...then it can really backfire. hence no more relatioships or emotions,we guys are so easy to manipulate and I dont like being manipulated. I talked to 250 women and 100 guys in the last 2 years regarding all aspects of sex and found it pretty interesting. Most women will admit that"wanting recognition or aproval" or"daddyissues" often is a good way too explain a slutpast. The fact that she just enjoys sex very much with different duded doesnt sound too great in our ears and not hers either.

1 Point Benja 01 Jun 2010 General Comment

That's a thoughtful response. Nutz is making somewhat of an Appeal To Nature. Even if there's a good biological explanation for our current behavior, that explanation by itself is not a justification for our behavior.

1 Point Adam Atlas 17 Apr 2010 Editorial Comment

I'd recommend changing "girl" to "woman" in this question's wording. "Girl" could be taken as condescending or demeaning, if the question is intended to apply to women of all ages.

0 Points Benja 28 May 2010 Editorial Comment

Good call.

1 Point Adam Atlas 01 Jun 2010 Editorial Comment

More editoriality: The Catholic Church quote seems out-of-place alongside the other quotes here. They, and the question's description, are clustered mainly around the gender double standards regarding sexual promiscuity. The Catholic Church quote seems to be more about non-procreative or non-marital sex in general. (Granted, Catholic culture probably does take part in that double standard, but not officially that I know of.) Are there any existing questions where that would fit better, something like "Is non-procreative sex morally acceptable?" and/or "Is non-marital sex morally acceptable?"? Couldn't find any like those, but thought I'd check first.

0 Points Benja 01 Jun 2010 Editorial Comment

You're right, and that's an excellent solution. I added the question "Is causal sex morally acceptable?" and shifted the Catholic Church's quote to that question.

1 Point Adam Atlas 10 Apr 2010 Stance on Question: Disagree

The main purpose of the word "slut" is to deliver negative connotations, not descriptive meaning. By most dictionary definitions, yes, "a woman [is] a 'slut' if she has one-night stands", but you can't credibly claim to be using the word just as shorthand for "sexually promiscuous woman" while ignoring the connotations and associated value judgments. Yes, women who are promiscuous (and even women who merely openly acknowledge enjoying sex) deal with enough shaming even if the word "slut" isn't brought up, but it can only make things worse.

0 Points Keller Scholl 27 May 2011 General Comment

Nobody claimed that they were using "slut" as the shorthand you mentioned. You admit that the correct answer is agree, and then attacked the term. I agree with you about attacking the term, but don't put up a false answer because you disagree with the comment.

0 Points Benja 27 May 2011 General Comment

Interestingly, women vote with their ahem, feet, that yes, women are sluts for sleeping around, every time they downplay their sexual experience because they think that the truth is a bad thing.

0 Points Chance 10 Apr 2010 Stance on Question: Neutral

I once recall hearing the following joke: "If a girl kisses two guys, she's a slut. If man has sex with 5 girls, then he's a legend!"

Of course, the reason why this is considered funny is because it points out the ridiculousness of a woefully real fact, that society view of what a woman should conform to in terms of monogomy is much stricter than it is for men. Leaving behind public opinon of the matter, there is two possibilites:

1) Anyone, man or woman, who has sex with multiple people with no intention of a further relationship is a "slut."

2) Anyone, man or woman, who has sex with multiple people with no intention of a further relationship is not a "slut."

Finding myself unable to discern which of these possibilities is acutal truth, I'm forced to go neutral on this issue.

0 Points Benja 10 Apr 2010 General Comment

The biological and hence evolutionary consequences of sex are gender-asymmetrical. I would be surprised if this wasn't the root cause of the prejudice.

0 Points Clive 05 Mar 2009 Stance on Question: Disagree

Not if she's sleeping with me

0 Points Clive 05 Mar 2009 Stance on Question: Agree

Only if she's not sleeping with me.

0 Points JCBartlett 04 Mar 2009 Stance on Question: Disagree

Nope.

Why would anyone deny themselves pleasure?

0 Points Big Daddy 27 Mar 2013 General Comment

I think women are here to be conquered. They were put on earth for us men to enjoy. The more you conquer the bigger the stud you are.