Financially Strong Women Render “Cougar” Term Sexist and Outdated

Skilled and cunning hunters, carnivorous predators — such is what society thinks of women who date younger men. The term “cougar” exists colloquially to highlight how “cougar-cub” relationships break traditional age-gender roles. Many stereotypes come with older woman-younger man relationships: “Cougars” want to regain their youth, and their relationships are non-committal until the real older man comes along. However, advances in women’s rights and roles in the household should make these relationships less taboo. To generalize all older women-younger men relationships as entertaining oddities is sexist and outdated.

In a 2011 national study by the New York State Unified Court System, 38 percent of wives reported earnings equal to or greater than their husbands’, and nearly four out of 10 mothers were the primary source of income for their families. The double standard that makes it acceptable for older men to date younger women but not the other way around is illogical when women are now often the breadwinners of their families. Older men are seen as having a financial advantage over younger men — the older the man, the more established his career path, the more income he earns. However, women’s financial independence takes away the need for men to provide, therefore deeming the older-man advantage irrelevant.

Only the two partners involved should determine the dynamic and the success of their relationship — it is not society’s place to belittle their relationship simply because the woman is older. Love is love, no matter the age.

— Angel Au-Yeung
Contributing Writer

“Cougar” Relationships With Significant Age Gaps Can Cause Future Problems

Cougars are part of a growing phenomenon of May-December romances. While the age gap of a few years doesn’t pose a huge obstacle, problems arise when women of considerable age date men significantly younger than themselves.

The marriages of Courtney Cox and David Arquette (age difference of seven years) and of Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher (age difference of 15 years) both ultimately failed due to cheating on the husband’s part. In a 2003 report by the American Association of Retired Persons, women reported to be less sexually active as they aged in comparison to men.

According to a survey conducted by Women’s Health and Men’s Health magazines, 23 percent of men have cheated on their wives due to a lack of sexual spark in the bedroom. Older women may be more unwilling to have sex, causing men to be more likely to cheat in these “cougar-cub” relationships.

Dating older woman may also come with children and ex-husbands. The AARP report also showed that 42 percent of men and 56 percent of women believed that a major problem with dating older people was previous relationship history. For men wanting to start their own families, dating an older woman may be difficult if the woman is past her optimal childbearing years. Biologically speaking, the optimal age for childbearing is 20 to 35, and cougars are typically over 40.

Though dating an older woman may seem alluring, being with a “Mrs. Robinson” is fraught with difficult issues that can be avoided by dating within the same age group.

— Sharon Lay
Staff Writer

“Cougar”-Calling Overdone In Media to Create Controversial Headlines

The term “Mrs. Robinson” — a name given to cougars in the 1967 movie “The Graduate” — which usually refers to an older woman who preys on younger men, has recently been misconstrued by the media to create headlines. The word “cougar” in these articles produces a negative stigma that we should not associate with all women of an older age.

This definition of a cougar is now assigned to an increasing number of famous couples, whether the woman is five years or even a few months older. An April 2012 Celebuzz piece had its own gallery titled “Hollywood Cougars,” which included Nicole Kidman and her relationship with Keith Urban. She’s four months older than he is, or, in other words, half the shelf life of a Kim Kardashian marriage. The needless classification of women who date men not much younger than they are as cougars indicates that publications are thirsting for news. The immediate gratification controversy provides piques reader interest and garners page views — and the media knows this.

The word “cougar” shouldn’t carry any negative stigma, and the disapproving publicity these famous figures have to deal with reflects not on the couples themselves, but the media. The parameters of a “normal” age difference are debatable, but classifying certain women as predators is unnecessary.

Media outlets should not fight to create controversy at every turn —the term “cougar” has no special meaning other than the one the public wishes to assign women.

— Andy Liu
Staff Writer