It seems that Halloween has turned into an occasion, not only to re-watch Rocky Horror and carve pumpkins, but to wear rather revealing and ‘slutty’ costumes. Wandering around on Halloween night, you will find no shortage of slutty cop, witch, and Play Boy Bunny costumes. Not that this is a problem; I myself have sported many such costumes. What I don’t entirely understand is why these costumes are referred to as ‘slutty’ or why men and women refer to other women as looking like ‘sluts.’
If you look up the definition of slut in the Oxford dictionary it says that a slut is a derogatory term meaning, “a promiscuous woman”. Webster dictionary also went on to say that it is a term that seems to be targeted at women who identify as sex workers. Last time I checked, if a girl is wearing a short skirt, that definitely does not mean that she is selling sex: It means she feels like a wearing a skirt. So therefore a woman wearing a sexy Halloween costume is not selling herself and is not a slut (let me clarify and say that I am by no means insinuating that women who sell sex are sluts).
Overall, yes, Halloween is a holiday that is an excuse to dress scantily. It’s a chance for people who maybe don’t typically feel comfortable throwing on a corset or mini skirt to wear these articles and feel a greater sense of acceptance and for that I say all the power to you. I personally relish the thought of putting on my false eyelashes and flirty skirts and showing off my creativity. I think the real issue is not about this holiday being an excuse to dress ‘slutty’ but rather how it seems to be an excuse to slut shame. The term ‘slut’ seems to have been popularized in our society even though a lot of people really don’t understand what it means. Remember when everyone thought saying ‘That’s so gay” was acceptable? After people starting talking about the effect and harm behind that particular use of the word gay, we have begun to change not only our usage, but also developed greater support for the gay community, which is exactly what we need to do here. Everyone needs to recognize the negative connotations around the word ‘slut’ and understand that using it in this context it is degrading to women and unacceptable. If we really are serious about the feminist movement, this is another way we can make a huge impact.
So feel free to whip out your Playboy Bunny costumes and remember, a skimpier outfit can be ‘sexy’ but is not slutty.