Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Women and Manliness
I thought it was interesting that a manly man respected women and was chivilrous but he did not give her rights. A independent woman would have been a threat to one's manliness. This seems to show that men saw women as important, but for traditional reasons of raising a family and maintaining the household. A man did not want a wife who thought that she should be able to vote or hold the same job as her husband because he would be ridiculed and the whole paternalistic system would be destroyed.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Purav,
ReplyDeleteI think that Bederman was also arguing that women were important to men constructing their manliness. In order for a man to be "manly" he had to show self restraint and protect "lesser" groups of people, including women. Therefore, women, and other races, were necessary to provide white men an opportunity to demonstrate their restraint. Thoughts?
I agree Mark and I think Bederman is showing that "manliness" and "civilization" are both constructions and that many different (types of) people are involved in these constructions.
ReplyDeleteRichard,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. I think that Bederman suggests that for constructions of "manliness" and "civilization" to take place, that middle-class white men require different groups. Bederman seems to be suggesting that the juxtaposition of one group to another is vital to constructing identity. She seems to be suggesting that to produce an "in" group, that an "out" group is necessary. Thoughts?