Genre Blog Post: Short Fiction

In this last and final blog post I am going to focus on a very common theme that I have been working on the whole semester and I thought I should end on and thats dehumanization. I am going to Focus on this theme in the short story called Sexy by Jhumpa Lahiri. I feel like this theme can apply to this story in many ways. My prime example is just how Dev seems to be using Miranda only for sex and in the story it seems to be this way. For example, "The first Sunday she opened the door in the knee-length robe, but Dev didn't even notice it; he carried her over to the bed, wearing sweatpants and sneakers, and entered her without a word. Later, she slipped on the robe when she walked across the room to get him a saucer for his cigarette ashes, but he complained that she was depriving him of the sight of her long legs, and demanded that she remove it."(7). It things like this that shows that Miranda is just being used and to me thats an example of dehumanization.

I can relate this to other classes and other movies that come to mind. I think of back in my English class in 8th grade and we read a book about a girl who was in the sex trade. Even though these are completely different circumstances it did remind me of that. How woman are being used as objects for sexual pleasures. I also see this type of thing in Game of Thrones with the brothels and just having the woman there used as sex objects not real actual people.

When readong this story and using that quote I think it makes a pretty significant impact on Miranda throughout the story. I think she is double guessing herself as the story goes on and guys in general. For example she questioned when Rohin tells her shes beautiful. ""What does it mean?” “What?" "That word. 'Sexy.' What does it mean?" He looked down, suddenly shy. "I can't tell you." "Why not?" "It's a secret." He pressed his lips together, so hard that a bit of them went white. "Tell me the secret. I want to know." Rohin sat on the bed beside Miranda and began to kick the edge of the mattress with the backs of his shoes. He giggled nervously, his thin body flinching as if it were being tickled. "Tell me," Miranda demanded. She leaned over and gripped his ankles, holding his feet still." (16). I think this relationship she has with Dev is really putting her down and it shows. She's to me being used as a sex object in the cheating relationship. It doesnt seem to be more than that to me. they usually end up doing sexual things every time there together so later when she meets this new guy and realizes there might be other love out there compared to just having sex. She starts to double guess Dev. " "Do you remember that day we went to the Mapparium?" "Of course." "Do you remember how we whispered to each other?" "I remember," Dev whispered playfully. "Do you remember what you said?" There was a pause. "'Let's go back to your place.'" He laughed quietly. "Next Sunday, then?" The day before, as she'd cried,"(17) I think this shows the impact of this type of relationship can have on Miranda and I feel like she does feel dehumanized as she was used just for sexual purposes.

I think this story does show this problem of dehumanization but of a different scale compared to that I was discussing in other projects throughout the semester with slavery. I think this has another impact but can be categorized in the same subject. As Miranda was used as the sex object and never really caught up on it throughout the novel and when she did she started second guessing other men she saw and ultimately this type of action can leave a scar on this young woman's soul.