The Sexual Politics of Meat

Carol Adams's "The Sexual Politics of Meat" deals primarily with the overarching idea that the distribution of meat to people in many societies is often dictated by underlying sexism within the culture, with the men being served meat first and the women second, if at all. It is interesting to me that meat and the consumption of different types of food is seen as a sexist, racist and classist act, as I have not had much experience with this division during my life. I go to the dinning halls and see a multitude of people from all walks of life devouring whatever types of food is available/sounds good to them at the time, and in this instance I wonder if the concept of this division of humans due to meat holds true. But then I turn to magazines, billboards and commercials, and I am bombarded with an array of overly photoshopped and horribly sexual images comparing the half naked body of a human female with the consumption of hot, juicy meats.

It is rather sickening to see these all too common advertisements, as is it gives credit to the idea that women are in some way comparable to meat, and therefore exist to be devoured by men. It also strongly relates to the common connection that is often shown in literature between women and animals. Our patriarchal society assumes that men are superior, and that women are there to be objectified, and devoured and gazed upon by men. This also relates to the concept that Carol Adam's talks about with women being symbolized by vegetables, and how if men are the ones who should consume the meat, then women should rely and vegetables and other foods, much as other animals do.