Does purity culture dehumanize women?

Does Purity Culture Dehumanize Women? The Double Bind of Mormon Modesty

Purity culture does not merely suppress female sexuality; it splits women into two competing categories, neither of which permits full humanity. Within Mormon communities, the question of whether these teachings dehumanize women surfaces repeatedly in counseling offices, online forums, and now increasingly in academic critique. The evidence suggests that when religious frameworks teach women their primary value lies in sexual restraint while simultaneously allowing men to define the boundaries of that restraint, the result is a theological cage with invisible bars.

Background: The Historical Construction of LDS Sexual Ethics

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints constructed its modern purity theology during the mid-twentieth century, layering Victorian sexual ethics onto a theology of eternal progression. Leaders taught that female chastity functioned as literal currency, with virginity presented as a "gift" for a future husband and any compromise threatening not just social standing but cosmic standing. Young women received object lessons involving chewed gum, used tape, and licked cupcakes, each visual metaphor reducing human complexity to a consumable item that loses value through contact.

This framework intensified during the 1990s and 2000s with the "For the Strength of Youth" standards, which codified specific hemline measurements and dating rules. The curriculum presented male sexual desire as a destructive force that female modesty must manage, effectively making women's bodies the control mechanism for male behavior.

Key Claims: The Split Image of Female Worth