The Sex Lives of Gen-Z: How College Hookup Culture Manifests in Media

Reading the barricade of comments surrounding the color, size, and shape of female genitalia, I wince nearly every time I peek into the comment section of a pretty girl’s post. One look at the intensely misogynistic remarks on TikTok and one might question: is romance dead? Perhaps not, but thirsty (and objectifying) comments seem much more abundant than grandiose Shakespearian gestures. With the modern sonnet being anthems like Cardi B’s “WAP,” in a new generation of sexual liberty, how do romantic relationships persist?

We can look to the burst of sex-positive television to outline a generational shift in the interpretation of sex, one that more closely aligns with the falsified connections of the digital age. For one, HBO’s The Sex Life of College Girls, a comedic series following four young women and their journey navigating love at Essex University, largely encapsulates contemporary dating. The show helps destigmatize the dated taboos of female modesty, most notably with the protagonist Bela’s unfiltered and horny stream of dialogue. From thirsting over a young Stalin to her hilariously shameless lines like “let’s klunk out with our junk out,” Bela’s lust is undeniable as much as it is undenied. Moreover, the show illustrates the consequences of unsafe sex practices, highlighting the importance of contraception, regular STD testing, and proper sex education. 

Yet, accompanying the wave of sex positivity is the depiction of lonely, artificial relationships: a shifting culture of casual sex. Hookups, most prominent amongst college students, can foster falsified “situationships,” defined by the highly acclaimed Urban Dictionary, as “​​less than a relationship but more than a booty call…a romantic relationship that is, and will remain, undefined.” In The Sex Life of College Girls, Kimberly Finke finds herself in a one-sided situationship centered around unabating sexual attraction. Of course, with sex functioning as a distraction from everyday hardships, this type of emotionally draining relation results in some serious academic consequences. Casual sex, as depicted on the show, can promote disconnected relationships that lack emotional boundaries—a muddy entanglement of love and passion that often overpower the informal label. Furthermore, it creates an unhealthy relationship built upon sex that with short-term gain serves to divert, whereas intercourse can function as a source of long-term relationship building and empowerment. The eroding stigma of modesty is generally beneficial, yet, the normalization of transactional, meaningless sexual relations has its emotional repercussions—feelings of anomie and disconnect worsened by the pornographic virtual world. 

According to a cross-sectional study from the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, the median age of porn exposure is now just 14 years old. The new surge of porn addiction that plagues youth culture proves objectifying and desensitizing. With top categories of Pornhub being “barely legal,” “Japanese,” “Lesbian,” and “consensual non-consent,” meaningless, non-consensual sex and fetishized racial content haunts the internet and perpetuates bigoted, irrational conceptions of sex. Adolescents basing their knowledge of intercourse on an unethical industry, one that also endorses unrealistic body standards, can then manifest in the perception of sexual relationships and hookup culture. Sexual liberation in the modern age simply masks the degradation of the past under the guise of progression. When did the benevolence of the 1960s sexual revolution that sought to empower women regress into the endorsement of a corrupted industry? 

Shows like The Sex Lives of College Girls help illuminate the lusty jungle of college hookup culture. Though the death of unrealistic and falsely-altruistic chastity can be celebrated, the lack of meaningful connection proves concerning. With more exposure to the pornography industry than ever before, Gen-Z is confronted with alarmingly regressive and abasing content. Coupled with feelings of disconnect in an on- and offline world, college hookups are only another burden in the quest to find love in the digital age.