[rasz]

> female college student was having an affair with her professor...and there were other plot elements...but the amazing thing was that the other characters did not think the relationship was unusual at all

Thats because females in 1950 USA had very little rights. It was barely 30 years into letting them vote, but only as long as they stay in the kitchen homemaking 'where they belong'.

>would be portrayed as scandalous

exploitative is the word, balance of power is pretty clear here.

>this nation is entering some sort of neopuritanical hell hole

because you cant willy nilly fuck people you have authority over? indeed end of the world.

[jollybean]

???

An adult female and an adult male having a consensual relations is related to 'rights' in what way exactly?

Because I don't think that has anything to do with the situation.

Exploitative by whom? Students don't have to f** profs, it's never been that way.

Your posture is actually sexist, implying that somehow adult females cannot make their own choices.

[sofixa]

> Exploitative by whom? Students don't have to f* profs, it's never been that way.

Unless they do or feel like they have to. That's the whole point, when there's a serious power imbalance like teacher - student, boss - direct report, consent is not so easy. The person with less power can have their life/career/studies depend on the more powerful one, and they can feel that they have to fuck them, or continue fucking them, or do that kinky thing they don't feel comfortable with, or else, even if that's not the case (but it sometimes is). That's why many places have strict policies that forbid such relationships, and it's up to the professor to know better even if they both want to.

[anigbrowl]

Well, there's a big difference between a student banging a prof with whom they have no other connection, and one who has direct control over the student's transcript. You don't want professors exploiting students for sex, nor do you want lazy students exploiting professors to meet their requirements. Ethical mindfields like that should be limited to grad students.

[koshergweilo]

Please watch this educational video. It's a video introduction to power dynamics https://youtu.be/-yUafzOXHPE