Let me assure you though, it has nothing to do with patriarchy, the gender binary or any of those things that feminists seem to talk about all the time.
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11 comments
December 13, 2013 at 6:34 am
john zande
Interesting. Regretful, but interesting nonetheless.
Arb have you ever considered bad male behaviour might be greatly linked to Terror Management Theory? I only stumbled on it (TMT) just the other day, but damn if i can’t see it now in almost every form of assbackward behaviour
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December 13, 2013 at 9:35 am
syrbal-labrys
Considering that in animals aside from human beings, the sex drive is among the most powerful; I sometimes find myself wondering if we bipedal sorts give ourselves too much credit for “advancement”. Perhaps human males are not so different that the male elk that fights everything in sight and gathers a harem? What if the male dominance is expressing utterly un-repressed natural drive to reproduce?
And then I smile and remember an old friend, who responded to sexual harassment different than every woman I knew…and think, hey, yeah…TMT could be something on this even if it is a mis-socialized drive to reproduce. B. would smile at the man who had just done something utterly uninvited and improper and ask him, “Would you like to be castrated? No? Then don’t ever do THAT again, cause you have to sleep sometime.” She never had to appeal to them with the “I’ve got a boyfriend.” bit. She was sufficient threat in and of herself.
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December 13, 2013 at 12:49 pm
john zande
@Syrbal
LOL!
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December 14, 2013 at 8:12 am
The Arbourist
@JZ
Just finished reading about TMT and mulling it over. I’m curious as to how you are applying this feature to one of the patriarchal aspects of society.
The ownership of females has been a standard feature our history and thus invoking the “protection” of being owned by another is, in fact, a survival mechanism – the Stockholm Syndrome writ large – so to speak.
From the reading that I’ve done, TMT attempts to address the base existential conflict of mortal human existence and the cultural artifacts we establish to combat the anxieties and fear we experience.
I’m guessing the connection your making is the social prevalence of irrational behaviour that (via TMT) are reinforced by the root problem of attempting to deal with our mortality.
Am I close? :)
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December 14, 2013 at 8:28 am
The Arbourist
@Syrbal
Good point, our cultural revolution/progress has far outstripped the natural pace of evolution. We have undergone a massive social and cultural change that has left us hardwired for a different set of adaptive circumstances.
That being said, it is important to emphasize that one of the formative characteristics of homo sapiens is the ability to adapt and thrive in almost any environment. I would argue that the salience of this feature trumps our slow to adapt physical evolution as evinced by the continuing social growth of our species.
I also worry when the biological hypothesis is brought into play as often the shitty behaviour of men suddenly has roots in fundamental biological drives and thus exculpates them from the nasty things they do. The biological urge platform then meshes with the male narrative of history thus implicitly normalizing the idea that male violence is an acceptable feature of society. It is when this link is drawn, that I internally cringe and prepare intellectual jihad, usually on the liberal dude that goes there. I’m not saying you’ve gone that route, but there where a few twinges as I read your comment. :)
I would put forward that your friend is an exception rather than the rule. Women, in general, are socialized to comply with male-dominance/violence in our society (see patriarchy). Such a viscous threat on her part would mark her for abuse and death in more patriarchal societies as she threatens the very core of male power.
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December 14, 2013 at 9:28 am
syrbal-labrys
Don’t mistake me (tho’ that is what I get for commenting while half asleep!), biological impulse is not offered as an excuse, more as a despairing “Oh, fuck, what if ?!” Even IF crappy male behavior did have some roots in biological urges it does NOT exculpate the behavior. After all, women are sure as hell never cut any slack about biologically motivated things? In fact, generally we are punished and called names when something it mentioned about feminine biology!
As for my friend B.? Yes, the exception and a walking example of another way; I still smile to see her smiling face and then the puzzlement and horror on the face of her harassing antagonist. You could almost see the wheels spinning: “But she is SMILING, she is so cute…she couldn’t possibly have said what I thought I heard…..”
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December 15, 2013 at 8:22 am
The Arbourist
@Syrbal
But, but, female bits are *icky*! (?!)
Lol. Cognitive dissonance at its best. :)
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December 15, 2013 at 11:37 pm
Matthew Chiglinsky
Every woman was created by a man, therefore she is technically his property. That’s her father I’m talking about, and then she is given away to her husband, who becomes her new owner.
Unless you were created in a lab, how do you think you were born? A man chose to impregnate your mother. He created you by using your mother’s womb.
That’s the raw biology of it.
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December 15, 2013 at 11:47 pm
The Arbourist
@Matthew
I wasn’t aware people were property, or owned even. That seems to be a somewhat archaic view of how family/interpersonal relationships work.
Try this. Two people consensually decided to join in sexual union and the result was me. :)
So the whole haploid gamete thing *isn’t* “raw biology”?
Matthew, if you’re going to troll at least get some better ammunition. :)
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December 16, 2013 at 9:39 am
labrys
Well, then, every man was created by the woman that bothered to stay pregnant and not drown him at birth….if you want to get “raw” about it.
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December 16, 2013 at 11:13 am
Matthew Chiglinsky
Every male is a closeted rapist. That’s why. It’s the basis of our society, left over from when we were primitive animals. We evolved from it.
But don’t think females are so great. Every human being, male or female, is a closeted murderer and thief. How many animals did you kill for dinner last week, and even if you are a vegetarian how many vegetables did you steal from the environment around you?
We’re all brutal animals with layers of polite social conventions to dress up the ugly truth to make it look a little prettier.
But, personally, I don’t treat women like property because I’m kind of an anarchist. I don’t treat anyone like property. I like to let people roam free and watch them dance around and play and see what they’ll create.
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