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But what does consent in this context really mean? And equally important is the aspect of liberty: in a country where women’s higher education continues to be a right to fight for, would the proposition of sex and desire within the education space transform into a dangerous obstacle, or a liberating pathway into adulthood — and even intellectual maturity?
Who is really in control, and does power complicate desire, consent?
Many feminists have argued passionately against student-professor sex on the grounds that when power flows top-down, there’s no room for consent. Billie Wright Dziech, one of the foremost advocates for banning student-professor relationships, was of the view that all such unequal relationships are inherently exploitative.
Even when students do acquiesce to getting intimate with professors who initiate it – and even if they initiate the relationship themselves – their consent is not necessarily implied.
But as the bell hooks case shows, the gendered dynamics aren’t always as straightforward as that. Does it mean the institutional power in the hands of a professor, no matter who they are, overrides all else? Not necessarily.
The flipside: it’s patriarchal to assume that women students wouldn’t have any agency.
As more universities began to place restrictions on these relationships, a common critique of the rules was that they undermine a student’s agency as an adult. These rules also imply that all sexual dynamics are heterosexual and patriarchal, with the professor an all-powerful man and the student a helpless, victimized woman.
But sometimes, it’s this very power dynamic that people actively consent to – and find sexy. In fact, an intimate relationship with an intellectual superior can subvert the power dynamic.
Protectionist attitudes towards women and sex, however, have ensured that in India, the University Grants Commission doesn’t even recognize relationships in this context. This steeps these relationships in further silence – preventing recourse for when they go wrong. And banning them altogether could “create a climate of silence and taboo that would only intensify dynamics of coercion and exploitation,” as bell hooks noted.
The bottomline
Talking about sex between students and professors adds several more layers to the conversation about power within feminism. In India, however, the line remains sadly blurred between desire and abuse of power.
“Through these years, we gained some insights into our sexual cultures, where affection and authority, passion and control, brilliance, and perversity are often fused together and sometimes indistinguishable,” wrote V. Geetha, a feminist academic, in a piece explaining her decision to call for the resignation of a journalist after his students accused him of sexual harassment. It speaks to a feminist disappointment with how women’s experiences in education haven’t been dealt with to their fullest extent – with their desire, intellect, and power being neglected questions.
At the heart of the debate is the urgent concern for women’s experience of intellectual growth and learning. The silence on the topic of relationships themselves makes for an uneasy link between desire and abuse of power where there shouldn’t be. Unpacking it is crucial to understanding the inner lives of young women in education – especially when it isn’t something to take for granted.
Read full article here : https://theswaddle.com/the-feminist-debate-are-student-professor-sexual-relationships-always-unethical/
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