Promiscuity: Men vs Women

A young man (Joey) who has never had sex is talking to a friend. He says, “Holy cow, it’s so hard to meet women, and it’s impossible to meet a virgin. Maybe I should go look for a wife in another country, where the women aren’t all whores.”

A woman (Mary) who overhears him is enraged. She challenges him, “Why you two-faced moron. Men have sex with complete strangers at the drop of a hat, and you’re calling women whores? If men can have promiscuous sex, then women should have the same right.”

Joey is obviously off base when he suggests that all American women are “whores.” However, Mary makes the same mistake when she suggests that all men engage in promiscous sex. (I believe this is the fallacy of generalization, right?)

However, Mary may be making a second reasoning error in suggesting that promiscuous sex is equivalent between men and women. On one level, yes, men and women should have the same “rights.” However, the responsibilities and consequences can be very different for the two genders. For example, men don’t have to worry about getting pregnant. Women also face a greater risk of running into a sex partner who is physically abusive. As one Google executive’s ex-girlfriend said, women are more likely to be “slut-shamed” as well. That obviously isn’t fair, but it’s part of the reality that women have to deal with.

In summary, Mary is suggesting that promiscuous sex is the same whether it’s embraced by a man or a woman, when there are actually some significant differences. What is this fallacy called?

P.S. There are probably many people who think it’s OK or even good for women to be just as promiscuous as (many) men. However, I’m approaching this question from the point of view of one who might say “Just because many men have no standards, doesn’t mean women should drop their standards, too.”

Both Joey and Mary are stereotyping (the fallacy) when they make unsupported claims about male and female behaviour.  Without evidence, these statements are simply unsupported claims, assumptions, or opinions – hardly arguments.

Similarly, the statement about Mary’s second “reasoning error” seems like another opinion.  One might be able to turn this opinion into an argument by providing more facts and clarifying assumptions.  Rather than supporting the “there are actually some significant differences” claim by cherry picking a few examples that support the “worse for women” opinion, adding a more comprehensive and objective list could turn it into a more sound argument.  As presented, this point also seems more like an opinion than an argument.

While one could perhaps see it as a weak argument, it seems that it’s just a set of opinions.  As such, “unsupported assumptions and opinions” seems a better description than “logical fallacies”.

Whether or not Mary is overgeneralizing is debatable. She says men engage in such behaviors, but never specifies whether she means some men, most men, or all men.

As for the second part, I don't think there's an error in reasoning. Joey's initial statement implies that women who have had sex, even once, are morally inferior. Mary is specifically pushing back on that assertion by pointing out the double standard. She's not arguing that sex isn't riskier for women or that they should lower their standards, those are separate arguments that neither of them have brought up. It is feasible that a woman who has had many sexual partners has not necessarily lowered her standards or suffered any of those consequences.