Male chauvinism: how to recognize it and why we have to fight it
Male chauvinism is there and is alive and well, even in 2021. Anyone who says the opposite is because, perhaps, you've never had to suffer it. But what does this word really mean and how can we recognize it in the various contexts of our life? Let's find out together. Dealing with a male chauvinist in a couple relationship isn't easy, but have you ever wondered why you always attract the wrong people? The answer is in the video.
So is machismo
Masculinity is a term commonly used to indicate all those attitudes and ideas that identify man as the stronger sex and woman as, instead, a weak being, inferior and in need of protection. The superiority of men is expressed, according to the male chauvinists, in various spheres, from cultural to psychological, up to a real biological dominance. The word chauvinism has become popular since the 1960s, when feminism also began to spread. Although masculinism and feminism are often used as opposites, in reality the latter does not presuppose a superiority of women over men, but rather advocates gender equality.
Unfortunately, male chauvinism is still very present in our society and is easily recognized in all those situations in which the man places himself in a privileged situation with respect to the woman. To learn more about its nature, you can consult the book by Chiara Volpato, "Psychosociology of male chauvinism" or "Raffaele Mantegazza's work entitled" To make a man: education of the male and critique of male chauvinism ".
How to understand if we are facing a male chauvinist
If at times you happen to wonder if the man next to you is a male chauvinist, maybe it is because you felt you were treated with condescension (at best) or with superiority. One of the most typical attitudes of male chauvinists is the so-called mansplaining, or when the male feels entitled to have to explain to a woman concepts or procedures that are obvious or already acquired for her; or, male chauvinism is also evident when it is constantly interrupted, criticized and questioned.
Moreover, while a man can be angry and can show his disappointment aggressively, women, if they dare to raise their voice more than they should, are addressed with a not so veiled "hysteric". There is also another context, however, where male chauvinism emerges strongly, and that is linked to the body and sexuality. According to some so-called "alpha" men, a real woman should observe a behavior they deem appropriate in order not to create problems. as a female who shows off her body would not be, in their opinion, worthy of respect.
Obviously these are unacceptable behaviors to be strongly condemned, as well as the demand that the care of children and the home should be entirely up to women to be fought. Italy is unfortunately still far behind from this point of view, both in terms of protecting motherhood and in contrasting gender imbalances. However, the latent male chauvinism in our society can be identified not only in its most striking manifestations (such as discrimination, lower female salaries, the chronic absence of services to support pink work, ...) but also in other non-professional contexts. suspicious.
According to the data collected by the journalists Griglié and Romeo in their book "For men only", it seems that to reach gender equality in information technology, for example, it will still take about 280 years; and if, as they report, eight out of ten news items speak only of men because women are not represented in politics and economics, the situation that has arisen after the Covid pandemic could give the final blow to female employment .
Today more than ever it is important to fight against the male chauvinism of some men because it feeds an idea of the female universe as a world populated by defenseless, helpless and, underneath, inferior beings. Males who carry on this concept of display and aggressive masculinity harm not only women, but all of society.
