“Man’s Best Friend”, Sabrina Carpenter’s seventh studio album, was released on August 29th. The long-awaited project comes filled with sweet melodies, upbeat pop songs and playful, suggestive lyrics — signature traits of the singer, loved by her fans.
However, Man’s Best Friend was not only welcomed with praise but also met with significant criticism for its “provocative tone”. This is not the first time Carpenter has been a target of critics for unapologetically embracing her sexuality; her previous work, “Short and Sweet”, already split audiences over what is deemed “appropriate” for a female performer.
Still, hate comments towards Sabrina often attack her casual approach to singing about sex and accusations of vulgar performances, justifying this type of posture would be a “setback for the feminist movement”. But is this really about protecting women, or just moralism hiding behind the guise of activism? Why does a woman singing about sex still cause such scandals in our society?
“Puriteens”: Is Sex a Taboo Again?
The term “Puriteens” emerged online in recent years to describe a segment of young people who adopt more conservative attitudes toward sex and sexuality. The so-called Puriteens, seem to avoid any sexually explicit related content and despite the idea of casual sex.
Unlike the millennials, who were often criticized for ‘overdoing’ casual sex, gen Z is facing a new moral panic: they’re having too little. A research made by Business Insider in 2023 shows more than a third (37%) of gen Z never had sex and only 5% think this is the most important part of a relationship.
Another study published in Socius found that, among young adults aged 18–23 in the U.S, the percentage of women reporting casual sex in the past month dropped from 31% to 22% between 2007 and 2017. For men, it fell from 38% to 24%.
Gen Z having less sex doesn’t necessarily mean they’re uninterested in intimacy or conservative. But alongside this, we’re seeing a rise of online purity culture, with trends like the “trad wife aesthetic” and tutorials on cultivating “feminine energy” gaining popularity on TikTok — Not to mention the growing influence of the far right, marked by more moralistic ideals, which has also proven strong among the new generation.
Analyzing the combination of all of this, it’s possible to notice conservative tendencies spread among the generation. The psychologist Mikaella Rodrigues, explains from a psychoanalytic perspective how the media we consume can also subconsciously interfere on our behaviour and mindset:
“We are subject to various social influences, and media influences are no exception. These influences tend to shape and mold an individual’s self-perception. When we consume content that reinforces distorted narratives about moralism, conservatism, and the woman’s role in society, such narratives become internalized, leading women to believe that this is ‘their truth’.” She says.
When Sabrina’s music reaches those Puriteens and pushes against the conservative current, it unsettles them — fueling some of the criticism she faces from the supposedly progressive generation.
The Patriarchy and Structural Sexism
Sexuality has always been a controversial subject, but when it comes to females expressing it, the backlash seems to multiply. According to psychologist Mikaella Rodrigues, this aversion to women openly displaying their sexual pleasure is closely tied to historical and social factors.
This can be explained by the distinction society makes when interpreting female versus male bodies, like Mikaella says: “We can point to misogyny (hatred toward women) as a central social and cultural device which, through its historical roots, positions the body understood as masculine in a place of greater permissibility — that is, the freedom to express whatever one wants ‘cause it is understood, through a set of social phenomena, that this body belongs only to the subject who inhabits it, the one who expresses it, and is not under social control in the way a body that is read as feminine is.”
Male bodies, unlike female bodies, are seen as private, individual, and respected. When a woman owns her body and expresses herself, it causes discomfort or even outrage — not because it is wrong, but because for thousands of years society has built the idea that women focusing their lives on themselves, rather than on men, is wrong.
“When a woman expresses her sexuality openly, she is claiming the right to her body, which is private, not public. To claim this right runs counter to the historical oppressions imposed on that body; it is an affront to the male norm upheld by the patriarchal system,” Mikaella elucidates, revealing deeper motivations on why Sabrina’s way of performing disrupts part of the audience.
Internalized Misogyny
Still, Mikaella recalls how this dynamic is so rooted in our society that women themselves internalize it: “Misogyny can become internalized and reproduced among women themselves (…) These aspects often arise from the reproduction of sexist behaviors, which women themselves are not immune to.” Which explains why a great part of the criticism comes from women too.
Under a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) approach, the psychologist Thieli Fonseca explains this phenomena: “Internalized misogyny occurs when women absorb patriarchal values and begin to apply the same judgment to themselves and other women. In CBT, we can understand this as a learned dysfunctional schema. When this schema is activated, it leads to self-criticism, shame and judgment of other women who do not follow the same norm, such as those who openly express their sexuality, causing that discomfort.”
The Weight of the Gaze: Objectification VS Self Expression
One of the most frequent accusations Sabrina faces is that her persona — meaning her self-presentation through styling, music and shows — caters to the male gaze and reinforces misogynistic stereotypes.
However, before leaning into that, we need to consider who Sabrina is performing for. Is a grown woman singing about emotionally immature men and ironically fantasizing about an ex developing agoraphobia, really pandering to the male gaze?
According to the Psychoanalyst Mikaella Rodrigues, when telling self-expression apart from objectification, the primary factor to consider is the motivation behind the behavior: “A woman should express her sensuality consciously and authentically, as a path to freedom and self-affirmation. When the opposite occurs and a woman responds solely to external expectations such as media pressures or the male gaze, she risks falling into self-objectification.”
Further exploring this subject, Thieli Fonseca says: “The key point here is intention. If the expression of sensuality comes from an authentic choice aligned with personal values, it can strengthen personal security. But when behavior is guided by external schemas a woman risks self-objectification, leading to anxiety, constant comparison and reduced satisfaction with herself.”
In short, expressing sensuality should be a conscious behavior, not based on external motivations that often don’t make sense for you. That being said, Sabrina Carpenter’s vintage, yet bold styling isn’t an invitation to objectify her; it’s a deliberate reclamation of “girly” tropes, reimagined through the female gaze to affirm women’s pleasure, feelings and self-expression.
Why Sing About Sex
In a context full of shallow moralism and prejudice, unapologetically writing about one’s own pleasure and experiences as a female artist is both courageous and vulnerable, especially when criticism seems inevitable. Beyond that, openly talking about sex as a woman is a political act, a way of breaking chains that have been attached to our bodies for centuries.
According to Mikaella Rodrigues, psychology, especially through the lens of psychoanalysis, examines the social understanding of womanhood and its repressions. From a historical perspective, she explains how demonizing women’s pleasure is far from new:
“Female pleasure is often repressed from an early age as part of a strategy to domesticate women, pushing them further away from themselves and leaving them only with the performance of what society deems a woman should be and how she should behave.” (…) “It was once read as pathology, disorder, or hysteria. Historically, women have been pathologized.”
Mikaella goes even further into this topic: “When one is taught to repress sexual matters it reinforces the belief in a body that exists for subservience, a body that exists to serve (…) Understanding sexual needs as something natural supports the development of an integrated relationship between body, mind, and desire, strengthening self-knowledge and fostering a relationship that also prioritizes emotional well-being.”
From the perspective of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy’s point of view, Thieli Fonseca affirms: “when sex is seen as natural and positive, it can become a source of pleasure, connection, and health, strengthening self-esteem, intimacy, and quality of life, while reducing avoidance behaviors and making room for functional, fulfilling experiences.”
For that reason, it is essential for women to reconnect with their sexual lives and build a healthy relationship with them, gaining full control over them. Therefore, the role that artists like Sabrina Carpenter play is crucial. With all her reach and visibility, she engages audiences of different ages, like the psychoanalyst says:
“From the stance of these artists, women can broaden their perspectives, possibilities, and understanding of what they truly desire, discovering themselves as desiring subjects and no longer merely as subjects meant to fulfill someone else’s desire.”
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The article above was edited by Larissa Buzon.
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