Originally Posted by
aubreymcfate
I totally agree with this and this is the main thing that keeps me in a constant tension with many other feminists online. I've thought about this a lot, why there seems to be this fundamental miscommunication or misunderstanding between feminist rhetoric and well-intentioned men that feel unfairly demonized. There is misunderstanding on both sides but, to be clear, I definitely think there is this weird reductive and tyrannical shutdown mode a lot of feminists get into when it comes to certain expressions of masculinity. While I think it's important to be aware of how society may have instilled sexist behavior in us without realizing it (we should be free-thinking on every level, or at least aspire to be, not just when it comes to gender), you can't militantly try to snuff out displays of masculine behavior, or natural displays of dominance-submissiveness between men and women that are traditionally masculine/feminine. Having a critical eye at all kinds of social behavior is great, I'm all for constantly questioning, but it's like.. ugh I'm trying to think of a good analogy.. It's like trying to kill an ant in your apartment by knocking the whole building down. Like taking blanket offense at every usage of the phrase "your woman," which is totally insane and makes me want to slam my head against the wall.
bleh, i have a lot of thoughts on this, may share more at a later date. I really have invested a lot of time in trying to understand the psychology on both sides of this equation.