Born Sexy Yesterday

This video essay is about a gendered trope that has bothered me for years but didnt have a name, so I gave it one: Born Sexy Yesterday. It s a science fiction convention in which the mind of a naive, yet highly skilled, girl is written into the body of a mature sexualized woman. Born sexy yesterday is about an unbalanced relationship, but its also very much connected to masculinity. The subtext of the trope is rooted in a deep seated male insecurity around experienced women and sexuality. Note that Born Yesterday isn t meant literally. Born Sexy Yesterday can be written literally but it doesn t have to be. If media uses a fish out of water plot to frame an adult woman as an inexperience child then it fits the trope.