Diamonds: Because Men Should be able to Buy Your Love

Ah, women. We are simple, simple folk who really only want two things: diamonds and husbands. At least, that’s how advertising campaigns see us.

While trolling around the interweb one day, I stumbled upon this advertisement for Natan’s Jewelry (caption is mine):

Let’s ignore for a second that this picture assumes heterosexuality (besides, gay people don’t want to get married, they want to get gay married) and look at what it’s saying about the how the relationship between men and women function. According to this, a woman’s sexuality can be bought off. Women don’t actually want sex- they want a wedding. And, of course DIAMONDS! And men don’t actually want marriage, they want sex, and giving love is just a means of getting sex.

Aside from being blatantly false in their assumptions, to narrow down either gender to trite stereotypes trivializes the feelings of love and devotion that are supposed to come with a marriage. We also can’t ignore the religious notions that are addressed in images like this. I’m not saying there’s anything necessarily wrong with choosing to abstain from sex until marriage, but using marriage as a means to get sex belittles the institution and reinforces the idea of women as objects. Waiting for someone to initiate your right to be a sexual being makes you a passive thing to be acted upon. Also, when did your vagina become your most valuable part? Why do your mind and heart have to take a backseat to your ladybits?

Women are more than the objects commercials and advertisements make them out to be. We are not simple minded gold diggers out to trap men into marriage. And I’d like to think that men want more out of a partnership than a glorified fuck buddy.

Also, it blows my mind that we can look at images like this, which obviously trivialize marriage, and continue to preach about how gay marriage undermines the institution. Just saying.