Question

Conflict between sexes is one of the main theme and struggle of the play as women are withholding sexual favors to get their way. In your main thread, discuss the following

1. What seems to be the real motivation for women to withhold sex?
2. Is women’s idea to hold back sex a good approach to carry out their plan? Why or Why not?
3. Do you think the men are being treated unfairly in this play?
4. Do you think the withholding of sex would work in modern times? Why or why not?

TEDTalks: Pavan Sukhdev—Put a Value on Nature!

Answer 1

What seems to be the real motivation for women to withhold sex?

It is not an easy task to establish a single claim of the motivation for women to withhold sex. In most of the societies, there is the notion of the cultural construction of gender from an industrial setup to a post-industrial set-up where women are supposed to be loyal to the family and to their husbands. As compared to men, women are considered to possess the quality of 'nature to nurture'. The same ideological construct regarding women might have played a role in women to see themselves as essentially meant for committing to a single individual and thus withholding sex.

Is women’s idea to hold back sex a good approach to carry out their plan? Why or Why not?

While the analysis of women to carry out their plan should not only be limited to their sexual activities, nonetheless, the moral judgement women carry for themselves might have enabled or see themselves on the justice side as according to the eyes of the society. Like in most of the eastern world like the Middle East and India, women's sexuality has been controlled to an extent that the honour of the family directly is associated with the parent's protecting their daughter's virginity.

Do you think the men are being treated unfairly in this play?

Now, who treats who is another different question. As long as there is the structure of patriarchy or the male dominance defining almost everything, then it becomes a men's world.

Do you think the withholding of sex would work in modern times? Why or why not?

One reason the social and cultural life is changing in the modern world is that there is a reorganisation of the economy and consequently that has changed the work culture of all individuals. Women are now in demand in workplaces which has its own political economy tinge behind it. Nevertheless what is important is that cities and urban life have become widespread and traditional structures and values are gradually disintegrating. The very work culture makes individuals deprive of prolonged physical intimacy along with the explicit content of popular media, withholding sex is bound to not work like it used to be.