Misogyny Of Women

Misogyny in art dates back further, from Marvell, to Giovanni Boccaccio in his 14th century book, The Decameron. Boccaccio commences his book by generalizing women in the statement: “Whenever, fairest ladies, I pause to consider how compassionate you all are by nature, I invariably become aware that the present work will seem to you to possess an irksome and ponderous opening” (Boccaccio 4). He continues on to warn women to brace themselves, for his stories may be perceived as gruesome. In doing so, he assumes that all women are intolerant of anything of a disturbing nature and that they are fragile and need to be monitored. This is reinforced when the women narrators of the book plan to venture off to avoid the plague and Filomena says:
“...You
must remember that we are all women, every one of us is sufficiently adult enough to acknowledge that women, when left to themselves, are not the most rational of creatures, and that without the supervision of some man or other their capacity for getting things done is somewhat restricted. We are fickle, quarrelsome, suspicious, cowardly, and easily frightened; and hence I greatly fear that if we have none but ourselves to guide us, our little band will break up much more swiftly, and with far less credit to ourselves, than would otherwise be the case” (Boccaccio 17).
Filomena declares that women are not able to perform tasks alone without the help of men. Boccaccio has the option to make this a statement concerning specifically the group of women involved, but chooses to generalize it to the sex as a whole. The fact that he uses a woman to deliver this line also internalizes this sexist mindset into the audience, since now it seems that women identify with this description of their capabilities. One of the stories from The Decameron gave rise to a painting in 1884 by Frederic Leighton, further demonstrating women’s role as sex objects or accessories for men:

According to The Decameron, a dull man, Cymon, comes across an unclothed and unawake Iphigenia and is so taken aback by her beauty, that he resolves to become a more proper man for her sake. This painting is a literal display of the male gaze. A woman sleeping in a sensual position, covered only by a sheet, serves as the centerpiece, while off to the side, a clothed man stands in the shadows to admire her body. Leighton showcases female sexuality as something for men to admire and survey. Going beyond simply just admiring, Cymon’s hand appears to be pulling up on his gown, as if he is preparing to undress himself and join Iphigenia in her bed. Iphigenia being asleep results in her being unable to give any form of consent. This painting bears a message that men can gawk or pursue whoever they desire, regardless of the woman’s cooperation. Similar to Iphigenia’s beauty inspiring a change in Cymon, RaeLynn’s song “God Made Girls” gives the notion that a woman’s purpose in life is to improve the lives of men. Several lines of the song state what girls’ duties are:
“Somebody's gotta wear a pretty skirt,
Somebody's gotta be the one to flirt,”
“Somebody's gotta make him get dressed up,
Give him a reason to wash that truck”
These two couplets urge girls to go beyond being objectified by men, and to objectify themselves by being the award men achieve for being responsible. Ultimately, a girl wearing a pretty skirt or flirting is not meant for building her own confidence, but rather for others to dote on her. Next, RaeLynn harps on the female’s submissive duties:
“Somebody's gotta be the one to cry
Somebody's gotta let him drive
Give him a reason to hold that door so God made girls”.
In this verse, RaeLynn submits to two stereotypes, the first being that women are emotional, whereas men are not. While crying and showing emotion does not necessarily equate to weakness, this line restricts women to a certain representation. The second stereotype is that men are leaders, as seen from the line proposing that women let men drive, or be in control. The subsequent line shows promise that Raelynn believes women amount to more than what she previously conveyed:
“Somebody's gotta put up a fight,
Make him wait on a Saturday night”.
However, the following line reverts back to RaeLynn’s old ways:
“To walk downstairs and blow his mind,
So God made girls”.
This line again advocates that women were created to be gaped at by men. Throughout the song, there is no mention of anything girls gain from God creating boys, or any form of girls being independent. The entire piece is evidence that society is centered around men and that women must conform themselves to whatever men need them to be, and this is supported by the fact that God made them for this reason. Along with Marvell, “God Made Girls” uses religion to enhance the validity of their
sentiments. The idea of what a typical woman should be was set in place by men, and made convenient for them.
This ideal was seldom challenged due to the circumstance that art had long been represented by men. This idea of a woman is someone who is meek, beautiful, and compliant to the wills of men. While this pattern spans throughout art history, it is most pronounced in several works, including Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress”, where the narrator flaunts his intellect in an effort to seduce a woman, who he exclusively identifies as being timid and physically attractive. Boccaccio’s The Decameron also exhibits these viewpoints through Boccaccio’s own prologue. Here, he assumes all women reading his book will not be able to endure the disturbing stories he’s written, indicating his view of women being weak. However, in this work, Filomena, a woman, also states that all women are incapable of working together and require the assistance of men in order to survive, which gives readers the impression that women agree with the presumptions of men, therefore rendering them to be true. The Decameron later inspired Leighton to create the painting “Cymon and Iphigenia”, which highlights the female form and depicts a man ready to take advantage of an unconscious woman. This induces a mentality to audiences that men are able to indulge themselves in the pleasures of watching or engaging with a woman regardless of her compliance. And although these works are considered to be part of art history,
the misogynistic reactions they evoke transcend time and are found in modern music, such as in RaeLynn’s “God Made Girls”. This playful tune encourages women to find the worth in themselves through being of worth to a man. In order to spur good deeds out of men, women should make themselves more attractive and be the end goal that men can attain. Although art has given sexism a strong foundation in society, art also possesses the ability to stimulate audiences to challenge the norms set by Boccaccio, Marvell, Leighton, and RaeLynn, and to make a profound critique in the way women are viewed.