Sexual consent is something that is receiving more widespread attention in the face of the #MeToo movement. However, sexual consent as the gold standard of sex is misguided and emphasized to the extent that all other relevant areas of consideration in terms of sex are all but eliminated. In this thesis, I begin by focusing on the flaws of sexual consent. I argue sexual consent is flawed in theory as it conforms to the masculinist tradition of philosophy, it oversimplifies sex, and it attempts to be objective in the face of sex. Further, there is a misguided attempt to fit sex into one-size-fits-all normative ethical approaches. I then argue that any sexual education surrounding consent is ineffective and overruled by the pervasive and poor representations of sex in mainstream media and mainstream pornography. I will then resolve these flaws by arguing for more emphasis placed upon non-mainstream theories of sex, namely theories put forward by Ann Cahill and Quill Kukla. I will then argue for the consent-forward approach to be replaced by a care-forward approach, following care ethics and Joan Tronto’s four qualities of care. Finally, I will argue for an improvement of sexual education and sexual normalization, by fixing sexual education and improving representations of sex in mainstream pornography and mainstream media. In doing so, I will formulate an approach to sex that is more conducive to good sex than the consent-forward model. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA) / The question of sexual consent has received a lot of attention as of late, with many expressing confusions surrounding the term. This confusion varies from questions about obtaining consent in an acceptable way to complaints about the seemingly ambiguous nature of the term. Recently, consent has been deemed the gold standard for participation in morally acceptable sex. I will argue that sexual consent is not as useful a tool as it is given credit for since it fails to consider morally relevant relationships, it oversimplifies and attempts to be objective, it is not properly learned or taught, and it focuses on a normative approach to consent—where sexual consent aims to be applicable to all scenarios, no matter the differences in said scenarios. I will argue throughout this thesis that sexual interactions should be more than merely permissible and rather should fall under the definition of good sex.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:mcmaster.ca/oai:macsphere.mcmaster.ca:11375/29588 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Northey, Sydney |
| Contributors | Forbes, Allauren, Philosophy |
| Source Sets | McMaster University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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