I'm more than a little dubious about this 'research', reported on in Stuff, suggesting that Australian women are as keen on group sex as men.
Hmmm. I make no judgement at all on women who do enjoy group sex, but I find it hard to believe that they're large in number. Group sex seems to me something that might seem like a good idea in theory, or when you're drunk, but in practice could actually be unpleasant or scary - the kind of situation where a woman might change her mind, but be afraid to say so, or not be listened to. (I could be completely wrong about all this, mind you - maybe everyone's doing it except me?)
Leaving aside the fact that this 'research' has been produced by an on-line dating service, and probably reflects a fair amount of desperate e-bravado, it seems rather strange that it should come out so soon after the Matthew Johns story broke. By portraying group sex as a fairly ordinary event in a woman's life, it could be seen call into question the claim of the woman victimised by rugby league players, that she wasn't a willing participant.
Johns and his teammates aren't the only ones struggling with the concept of consent, though. As the article puts it, 'Australian women are as keen as men to take part in consensual group sex'. This seems to imply there's such a thing as non-consensual group sex - ie, that thing that killjoys like me call 'rape'.
This article ultimately makes me wonder this: do women actually like group sex, or do some men want to believe that women like group sex? And does wanting to believe that women 'want it' make it easier to overlook teeny details in the heat of the moment - like ensuring you've got consent?
I need to share this quote from the article: "If you participate in group sex, you might feel like you are a little bit out on your own". Bless.
I need to qualify this post before it causes any more offence to those who enjoy threesomes or other consensual group adventures! My concern is that this article (and another I've seen recently) have been reported to imply that the woman in the Matthew Johns case was a willing participant. That's the definition which 'group sex' has been given in the media recently, and which is uppermost in people's minds. I don't believe that most women would want to suck off a boozed rugby team, but I may be wrong. (9.30pm)
Friday 29th at 11.44pm, from Julie: I've closed and hidden comments on this post for reasons that will be obvious to those who were reading it.
