Men Women
Gender Roles
11 'Girly' Things
Men Wish They Could Do
Without Judgment
The Huffington Post By Alanna Vagianos
Posted: 12/26/2013
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For a long time, women have fought -- and are still fighting -- to
overcome gender roles and expectations. However, it's important to
remember that rigid ideas about what men and women "should" or
"shouldn't" do isn't just bad for women.
A Dec. 17th thread asked the men of Reddit, "What girly thing do you really want to do or try but it is socially unacceptable?" Responses ranged from cuddling etiquette ("Being the little spoon") to fashion woes ("Toe socks") and showing emotion ("Crying in public without getting judged").
Here are 11 of our favorite answers:
1. Have more stylish clothing options.
As bradleynowell252
pointed out, "Girls just get so many choices on nice things to wear and
still look good, even in a casual manner." It's true that while women
can wear "masculine" clothing free of judgment, the same can not be said
for men in "feminine" clothing. "Also, fancy hats. It's a shame that
only women get to have awesome adornments in their headwear without any
social stigma," lokiikol noted.
2. Be able to talk about other men being attractive.
Kbjami
brought up an important point when he wrote: "Talking about how hot
Brad Pitt is. I'm not gay but I find Brad Pitt quite attractive.
Actually just talking about how attractive males are in general." We
completely agree, men should definitely be able to compliment other men.
And Brad Pitt is very attractive.
3. Order "girly drinks."
"For just once, I'd like
to get to order yummy pink drinks with chunks of real fruit that guys
secretly like but can't order because they'll be made fun of," responded
Reddit user Dwarf--shortage. We think everyone should be able to drink Flirtinis, Mudslides and Fuzzy Navels -- they're delicious!
4. Get treated to a spa day.
We can all agree that
there are few places more relaxing than a spa. So why is it only socially acceptable for women to attend these heaven-on-earth
establishments? Euphuist said that he would love to get a "Mani/pedi, face mask, all that jazz. Colour me intrigued."<
/span>
5. Carry a purse.
John Wayne and Gary Cooper
Emmy_Bee was one of the first to comment: "Not gonna lie. A purse would be hella convenient." And Riverchimp pointed out some of the exciting things one could carry around in a purse: "Could you imagine how much beer you could fit in a purse? Probably 8 cans. 8 friggin cans! With you all the time!"
I have nothing against a murse (male purse) but you really have to have
the swag to pull it off otherwise it will just look like you're using
your girlfriends purse
6. Dance like no one's watching.
Sadly, rigid gender roles even follow men to the dance floor. As Charbok
wrote, "When I get drunk I love to dance like a girl. I'm a big fan of
twerking. I also like to dance with my arms up, like in a girly way."
7. Wear makeup.
Although the politics of beauty
culture are quite complicated, and no one should feel compelled to wear
makeup all the time, it can be a really fun way to express oneself. Unfortunately, men rarely have the option of wearing makeup without judgment. As RamsesThePigeon noted, "I'm a decent-looking guy, but a little eyeliner and some foundation could still work wonders for me."
8. Get pampered by women.
Chivalry and tradition
teach young men they should buy meals and movie tickets, but many
responded that they would like to be wined and dined once in awhile. We
agree with kbjami
on this one, "I also love flowers and think girls should also buy men
flowers." While no one -- man or woman -- enjoys being ditched after a
drink, Radiationshield had a point when he wrote: "Get a girl to pay for my drink, then disappear like a phantom in the night."
9. Wear yoga pants.
Baseballwiz definitely said it best: "Wear yoga pants. I've worn them in private before. it feels like kittens hugging your legs."
10. Have fun with one's children without being judged.
Chairforceveteranput it perfectly when he wrote:
When walking through a parking lot, holding my daughter's hand, we usually skip. I get the dirty looks from men and women alike. I'm making my kid happy, why so much hate? Also, when my oldest was 4 ish, she asked me to wear a headband with kitty ears so we would match. We went to iHop and a dude would not stop staring at me.
When walking through a parking lot, holding my daughter's hand, we usually skip. I get the dirty looks from men and women alike. I'm making my kid happy, why so much hate? Also, when my oldest was 4 ish, she asked me to wear a headband with kitty ears so we would match. We went to iHop and a dude would not stop staring at me.
11. Be able to show emotion without being labeled as gay or a "p*ssy."
Whether it was crying over a sad movie or simply relating to a guy
friend, an overwhelming amount of respondents felt they couldn't be
openly emotional or sensitive without some sort of backlash. "Sometimes
if I'm upset I wish I could just cry and not feel bad about it," Thee_Gonz admitted. If this isn't proof that strict gender roles hurt men, we don't know what is.
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'Men are stuck' in gender roles, data suggest
Even as society encourages women into typically male roles, research shows it holds rigid gender stereotypes for men — probably to everyone's detriment.
http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-one-way-gender-revolution-20131227,0,7169949.story#ixzz2omYxftH0
Even as society encourages women into typically male roles, research shows it holds rigid gender stereotypes for men — probably to everyone's detriment.
http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-one-way-gender-revolution-20131227,0,7169949.story#ixzz2omYxftH0
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