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Podcast Notes Key Takeaways

• The practice of hooking up raises a lot of philosophical questions related to feminist theory, queer theory, and ethics
• The philosopher James Rocha defines a hookup as a sexual encounter by two people not in a committed relationship
• Theroots of the hookup culture can be traced to the rise of fraternities in American universities in the mid-1800s and the rise of women liberation movements in the early 20th century
• In recent decades, women have been encouraged to pursue their sexual desires more openly. They are rejecting the purity culture
• “In a sense, what hook up culture does is extend the traditionally masculine form of sexual activity to women” – Ellie Anderson
• There is a strong feeling of pressure to compete in the hookup culture, or what Lisa Wade calls “the erotic market place”
• The hookup culture is unforgiving to those who are excluded from the “market” due to cultural or religious differences, or low social capital
• Hookup culture’s norm of “radical casualness” undermines basic human decency
• “I think I would like to see a future where we move towards much more anarchic, respectful, and ambiguous ways of engaging in casual sex that doesn’t have the kind of contradictions endemic to the idea of hooking up”– EllieAnderson
• Because there is no end goal, hooking up is a form of resistance towards the logic of nuclear family; first love, then marriage (What Lauren Berlant calls a love plot)

Read the full notes @ podcastnotes.org

Hooking up: sexual liberation or unethical exploitation? With the rise of dating apps, sexual gratification seems like a few taps (or swipes) away at any given moment. What implications does this have for sexual ethics around consent, fantasy, and using other people merely for pleasure? In this episode, Ellie and David dive into the history, theory, and criticisms of hookup culture. Is there a way to hook up ethically? Some argue that the power imbalances fundamental to hooking up prevent it from ever being on equal grounds, yet others claim that the shift to hooking up generates potential for queer exploration and for sexual discretion in ways that were previously unavailable. Let’s find out!

Works Discussed

F Boy Island (TV Show)
James Rocha, The Ethics of Hooking Up
Danielle M. Currier, “Strategic Ambiguity: Protecting Emphasized Femininity and Hegemonic Masculinity in the Hookup Culture”
Lisa Wade, American Hookup
Lisa Wade and Joseph Padgett, “Hookup Culture and Higher Education”
Lisa Rudd, “Beyond the Closet”
Lee Edelman, No Future
Slavoj Žižek, A&F Quarterly, Back to School Issue 2003
Leo Bersani, Is the Rectum a Grave?

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