Paper Summary:

This paper examines the phenomenon of rampant scenes of violence and sex in horror films and how it may skew an audience's perception of sexuality. Scenes of brutality and torture towards women, shown in a sexually provocative manner, may attract and arouse men, while leaving women disturbed and scared. According to the paper, this portrayal of women and men also facilitates a narrow view of gender roles in our society, which is discussed further in correlation with gender socialization and various peer-reviewed article contributions from sociologists. Finally, the paper focuses on Social Learning Theory and how sexually violent horror films may translate into an unhealthy view towards sex in real relationships.

Outline:
Male Viewers: What Is the Appeal?
Male Viewers: Conformity to Gender Roles?
Male Viewers: Excited by Sexually Violent Material?
Female Viewers: What Is the Appeal?
Female Viewers: Disturbed by Sexually Violent Material?
Social Learning Theory and Sexual Content
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"According to Mary Beth Oliver, "females will report greater disturbance in response to distressing film scenes (violent or tragic) compared to males."[9] A more simplified reason for this distress is that the ways women are portrayed being victimized in horror films are so realistic to real life scenarios that may actually be seen in society. Women are typically shown being sexually assaulted in very graphic detail and it leaves a woman afraid, scared, and weak; especially when a male counterpart is present. The victimization of women in horror films is nothing new, they were originally made to thrill us by exploiting our fears, but "sexuality, a staple element of the horror genre from day one, began to be reflected in increasingly disturbing ways."[10] Over the years, as society has become more comfortable with expressing sexuality openly, horror films have evolved into a new genre that involves intense scenes of sexual violence that is dangerous and unfathomable for people to witness, especially women. I believe horror films have reached a defining point in our society; they no longer seek to thrill an audience, they seek to arouse the audience by creating more shocking horror films that depict an unhealthy representation of sex and violence."

Sample of Sources Used:

• [1] [2] [6] [8] Clover, J Carol. 1993. "Men, women, and chain saws: gender in the modern horror film." Princeton University Press. New Jersey.
• [3] [9] Oliver, Beth Mary. 1998. "The Impact of Sex and Gender Role Self-Perception on Affective Reactions to Different Types of Film." Sex Roles. Vol 38, Nos. 122. Retrieved from http://www.springerlink.com.libproxy.library.wmich.edu/content/v6l44863j8729032/fulltext
• [4] Rieser, Klaus. 2001. "Masculinity and Monstrosity: Characteristics and Identification in the Slasher Film." Sage Publications. 3 (4); 370. Retrieved from http://jmm.sagepub.com.libproxy.library.wmich.edu/cgi/reprint/3/4/370
• [5] Wharton, S. Amy. 2005. "The Sociology of Gender." Blackwell Publishing. Malden, MA.
• [7] [11] [12] Emmers-Sommer, M. Tara. 2006. "Suspense, Sex, and Violence: Men's and Women's Film Predilections, Exposure to Sexually Violent Media, and their Relationship to Rape Myth Acceptance." Springer Science + Business Media, Inc. Retrieved from http://www.springerlink.com.libproxy.library.wmich.edu/content /1053692x35287831/fulltext

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