Post by Origanalist on Jul 4, 2014 14:51:27 GMT -8
University offers female students extra credit for not shaving their armpits
By JESSICA JERREAT
PUBLISHED: 12:07 EST, 4 July 2014 | UPDATED: 17:08 EST, 4 July 2014
Female students at an Arizona university have been offered the chance to earn extra credit by not shaving their armpit hair for a whole semester.
The unconventional offer was made by women and gender studies professor Breanne Fahs as a way to get her students to challenge social norms.
Male students on the Arizona State University course are also able to apply for extra credit, but to qualify they have to shave all their hair from the neck down.
Behold the future America....
Fahs, who is director of the Center for Feminist Research on Gender and Sexuality, encourages her students to document their experiences in a journal for the 10-week semester.
Social experiment: Professor Fahs offers female students extra credit for not shaving their armpits
+2
Social experiment: Professor Fahs offers female students extra credit for not shaving their armpits
She said the social experiment helps students analyze society's attitude to genders, with female students facing ridicule for having hairy armpits, and the men gaining insight into how much pressure is put on women to stay hair free.
Social experiment: Professor Fahs offers female students extra credit for not shaving their armpits
'There’s no better way to learn about societal norms than to violate them and see how people react,' Fahs told ASU News.
'There’s really no reason why the choice to shave, or not, should be a big deal. But it is, as the students tend to find out quickly.'
Many of the students who have taken the hairy path to extra credit described it as a life-changing experience, and said they were shocked at the reaction from their partners, friends and family.
'Many of my friends didn’t want to work out next to me or hear about the assignment, and my mother was distraught at the idea that I would be getting married in a white dress with armpit hair,' Stephanie Robinson said.
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By JESSICA JERREAT
PUBLISHED: 12:07 EST, 4 July 2014 | UPDATED: 17:08 EST, 4 July 2014
Female students at an Arizona university have been offered the chance to earn extra credit by not shaving their armpit hair for a whole semester.
The unconventional offer was made by women and gender studies professor Breanne Fahs as a way to get her students to challenge social norms.
Male students on the Arizona State University course are also able to apply for extra credit, but to qualify they have to shave all their hair from the neck down.
Behold the future America....
Fahs, who is director of the Center for Feminist Research on Gender and Sexuality, encourages her students to document their experiences in a journal for the 10-week semester.
Social experiment: Professor Fahs offers female students extra credit for not shaving their armpits
+2
Social experiment: Professor Fahs offers female students extra credit for not shaving their armpits
She said the social experiment helps students analyze society's attitude to genders, with female students facing ridicule for having hairy armpits, and the men gaining insight into how much pressure is put on women to stay hair free.
Social experiment: Professor Fahs offers female students extra credit for not shaving their armpits
'There’s no better way to learn about societal norms than to violate them and see how people react,' Fahs told ASU News.
'There’s really no reason why the choice to shave, or not, should be a big deal. But it is, as the students tend to find out quickly.'
Many of the students who have taken the hairy path to extra credit described it as a life-changing experience, and said they were shocked at the reaction from their partners, friends and family.
'Many of my friends didn’t want to work out next to me or hear about the assignment, and my mother was distraught at the idea that I would be getting married in a white dress with armpit hair,' Stephanie Robinson said.
continued...