I'm always torn up about this stuff because I massively reject the female stereotype and do think it is one of our biggest problems as a society. Even with stuff like physical strength the social construct (started by telling girls they are weaker and by for centuries not feeding them enough, so we would as a gender evolve to need less energy) is much much stronger than the actual reality. So in a way I like these physical female heroes a lot (adored Starbuck and her fistfights for example).
True. We are unfortunately a very dualistic society. It's either/or not both. People for some reason or other feel this need to categorize things as either black or white, or male or female, or yin or yang. Which is a major flaw in our thinking by the way. Because nature is not one thing or another, it can't be categorized that neatly or precisely. The extremist view that you either have an unregulated free market society promoting individualistic/selfish needs or an overly regulated, collective society where the individual spirit is pressed down and silenced to fit the needs of the collective - is impractical, silly, and unrealistic. But people have troubles seeing the gray areas in between.
I do not fit the female category well. That doesn't mean I'm not heterosexual (by that I mean that people often assume someone is homosexual or a lesbian if they are female with male traits or male with female traits more obvious, they also assume if you are single and not obviously dating - which is not true of course of homosexuals, who date a lot, and many male homosexuals are very masculain and macho, while many female lesbians are extremely feminine and girly, you really can't make stereotypes about this - but people do) and feminine, I am. But I don't get on well with small children, no green thumb, not a nuturer or care-giver. And I'm big - almost 6 foot, big boned, not quite as big as Brienne on GoT but... However, I find spectator sports boring. I don't fit into a category. And neither does my brother - who hates the romanticized macho hero trope seen in Cormac McCarthy and Hemingway's novels. He's into clothes, gardening, very good with small children, and very much the care-giver. He's more like my mom, while I take after my Dad - uncomfortable with small children, hates to garden, and not into clothes except to look nice and fit in. But I have been painting my nails purple lately, and I like earrings and pretty things.
Our society struggles with that - they want things to be black and white, not gray or purple. It's easier. It's the flaw in our thinking, it's why we are stuck. We have move past it. My favorite season of Buffy - S5 and S6 really plays with the notion of duality and how it's not that clear cut. I also liked BSG - because it played with that idea as well - Starbuck and Athena and Rosylnn as well as Apollo, were good examples of that.
For sexist men to feel threatened (particularly those who are not actually physically strong), a women just needs to actually want to get on in the world
Yep. He fits the category - single, not physically strong, frustrated, and older...who has watched strong women rise above him. Co=worker is actually a nice guy, and his response unfortunately is typical, particularly of male dominated workplaces.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2012-06-09 05:20 pm (UTC)True. We are unfortunately a very dualistic society. It's either/or not both. People for some reason or other feel this need to categorize things as either black or white, or male or female, or yin or yang.
Which is a major flaw in our thinking by the way. Because nature is not one thing or another, it can't be categorized that neatly or precisely. The extremist view that you either have an unregulated free market society promoting individualistic/selfish needs or an overly regulated, collective society where the individual spirit is pressed down and silenced to fit the needs of the collective - is impractical, silly, and unrealistic. But people have troubles seeing the gray areas in between.
I do not fit the female category well. That doesn't mean I'm not heterosexual (by that I mean that people often assume someone is homosexual or a lesbian if they are female with male traits or male with female traits more obvious, they also assume if you are single and not obviously dating - which is not true of course of homosexuals, who date a lot, and many male homosexuals are very masculain and macho, while many female lesbians are extremely feminine and girly, you really can't make stereotypes about this - but people do) and feminine, I am. But I don't get on well with small children, no green thumb, not a nuturer or care-giver. And I'm big - almost 6 foot, big boned, not quite as big as Brienne on GoT but...
However, I find spectator sports boring. I don't fit into a category.
And neither does my brother - who hates the romanticized macho hero trope seen in Cormac McCarthy and Hemingway's novels. He's into clothes, gardening, very good with small children, and very much the care-giver. He's more like my mom, while I take after my Dad - uncomfortable with small children, hates to garden, and not into clothes except to look nice and fit in. But I have been painting my nails purple lately, and I like earrings and pretty things.
Our society struggles with that - they want things to be black and white, not gray or purple. It's easier. It's the flaw in our thinking, it's why we are stuck. We have move past it. My favorite season of Buffy - S5 and S6 really plays with the notion of duality and how it's not that clear cut. I also liked BSG - because it played with that idea as well - Starbuck and Athena and Rosylnn as well as Apollo, were good examples of that.
For sexist men to feel threatened (particularly those who are not actually physically strong), a women just needs to actually want to get on in the world
Yep. He fits the category - single, not physically strong, frustrated, and older...who has watched strong women rise above him. Co=worker is actually a nice guy, and his response unfortunately is typical, particularly of male dominated workplaces.