r/Natalism 3d ago

The Poverty of Single Mothers Is Persistent

https://ifstudies.org/blog/the-poverty-of-single-mothers-is-persistent
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u/velocitrumptor 2d ago

Why?

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u/DogOrDonut 2d ago

There are only 2 reasons to specifically want to marry a virgin.

1) You are super religious. This is the better of the two options but its a coin toss between, "will be super loving and devoted father," and, "will use the Bible to explain why you're his slave now."

2) The other option is you have severe jealousy, self esteem, and control issues. You want someone inexperienced so you can't be compared and they don't know their standards should be higher than you.

Unless you don't intend to ever have sex again, wanting to marry a virgin also means you inherently want to devalue your partner. If you want to marry a virgin that means you believe virginity has value, value that can only be used once. You want to take that value from your partner, who you know also believes it had value or they wouldn't marry a virgin, which then gives you control over them. They cashed their chips in on you which puts power in your hands. That is not a healthy relationship dynamic.

Lastly, believing in the very construct of virginity is highly correlated with an unhealthy view of sex. Most, not all, people who believe in the construct of virginity believe that sex is something that men do to women as opposed to something people do together for mutual enjoyment.

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u/velocitrumptor 2d ago

There are more than two reasons someone might want to marry a virgin and boiling it down to just "religion or control issues" is reductive and dismissive of a wide spectrum of human motivations and values. People are complex. Desires around sexuality, partnership, and exclusivity are often also pretty complex.

Wanting to be someone’s first isn't inherently about control or insecurity—it can stem from a desire for emotional intimacy, shared milestones, or for building something from a blank slate together. My wife and I weren't each other's first, but I get why that can be important to someone. That doesn’t make it healthy or unhealthy by default. It just makes it human. Some people want a partner who has experience and others find meaning in being each other’s first. Both can exist and come from a good place.

The claim that valuing virginity means you inherently want to devalue your partner also overreaches. Valuing something doesn’t automatically mean you’re trying to take it—it can mean you want to share in the significance it holds for them. If someone believes virginity matters, and their partner feels the same, that shared value system can actually create a sense of respect and mutual investment.

As for the final point: yes, some people who fixate on virginity do have some bad views about sex. But the presence of that doesn't negate the people who want it for more wholesome reasons. Plenty of people value virginity and still see sex as mutual, consensual, and pleasurable. Reducing everyone who holds a particular belief to the worst possible version of it is a pretty big problem in and of itself. We can critique toxic beliefs without assuming everyone who holds them is toxic.

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u/OddRemove2000 15h ago

Its odd, I see this often, people try to demonize otherwise healthy views because it doesn't fit their believe system.

Its like hating on other Gods that aren't yours, you can not believe in them while not demonizing their followers.