My point is that “objectification” is like attention deficit disorder, porn addiction, and the glass ceiling; just another in the long string of women’s efforts to pathologize that which they find distasteful, inconvenient, or threatening.
The term “objectification” is overused in our society, much the same way ADD, the “glass ceiling” and porn addiction. One must be careful though to not equate over use with triviality.
For example, objectification does exist in many forms, not just in the hyper-sexualization of women (and children). We can and do treat our fellow man as objects to be used if we, say, view our co-workers at an office as something to be used to advance our career and nothing else. Even quid pro quo relationships of any variety are a form of objectification if we forget or dismiss the other’s humanity.
Specifically also porn addiction. Porn addiction does exist. It’s certainly not the case of a young man (or woman) viewing porn once or twice in one’s life, or even as an adult, like at bachelor parties or as part of men’s room “trash talk”’conversation. While undignified, these are not examples of porn addiction.
If a man (or a woman) is viewing porn on a regular basis, every day or every other day, as part of some kind of routine, then this IS objectification and quite possibly an addiction.
Again, only Christ can help with such slavery. And it is a form of slavery, enslavement to base desires, which debase and dehumanize those afflicted. I can only say it’s truly not a way to live, and truly there is a better way to live, more fulfilling than any porn website. That better way to live is in communion and friendship with Jesus.
I speak from my own experience. There is no question in my mind that what I have written here is the truth, no question not because of what I read or what someone told me, but because I’ve lived that life and now have a better one thanks to Jesus Christ, my Lord and my God. Not through my effort alone, but through His help, my life is better.
Through this experience I can see now how I was addicted, and I pray every day He will not let me return to that enslavement.