Objectification

Have you ever walked into a room and felt very certain that someone was staring a hole into the back of your head? When you turn to find the intent pair of eyes, you find a man (or a woman for that matter) openly ogling at all of your body parts. You instantly feel exposed and objectified, serving only to indulge the likely many dirty thoughts playing out in your admirer’s head. I have experienced this countless times from less than discreet male onlookers and quite recently, fell victim to a female on the prowl. I was astonished to find that she was actually much more persistent than any guy I’ve ever encountered so far.

It’s one thing to openly appreciate an individual’s beauty in a public place. Sometimes the attraction can even be shared, if the admirer is respectful about his/her approach. Mutual eye contact is established and even a smile might be exchanged between parties in this ideal scenario. If both players seem willing, you may even be able to strike up a conversation and better yet, go out on a date.

If the pursuer, male or female, makes you feel uncomfortable or vulnerable however, all bets are off. When I am made to feel like I’m an object, I am immediately put off and I try to find any excuse to stop or leave the interaction. In some cases, I’ve been forced to be extraordinarily rude to my pursuer. In my recent experience with this with the female, I felt utterly cannibalized. Not only was she extremely open about her intentions with me, but she kept coming by to make it known.

The truly frustrating thing about my interaction was that I was in a professional environment, representing my workplace, so I wasn’t able to exactly shoe her away to the degree that I normally would another person on the street. I was literally trapped. Her persistence and openness made me feel like a piece of meat. It was something in her gaze, saying “You know you want to give it a try. I can make you want to.”

Objectification, coming from a man or from a woman is unacceptable, especially in a working environment. There are many ways to make your unrest with unwanted pursuits known on the street, but how can it best be resolved when you are in a public contact position, representing your company? In this situation, are you not supposed to shed a positive light on your organization? Wouldn’t rejecting an annoying personality be perceived negatively by any given onlooker? What is the best way to deal with this kind of dilemma? Considering my surroundings, I think I was too passive about my discomfort with her attention. If I am faced with this in the future, I hope I can be a little more up- front about my frustrations.