The simultaneous urge to be a manly man who takes charge and does whatever he wants but also being crippling by making decisions for yourself and needing a different strong man to tell you what to do is fascinating though. Not sure what to make of that.
One thing that I find continually fascinating about all these discussions is I swear to fuck I never spent this much time dwelling on "what does it mean to be a man" as a teen as these kids seem to every day.
I was more focused on who I should be as a person, not as a man specifically tbh
I do wonder if this is an unintended consequence of making trans people the new boogie man. It’s putting into everyone’s mind that being a man has to mean something and even the antitrans folk aren’t satisfied with “having a penis” as that meaning. Cus, well, is that really all it is?
Then again, maybe seeing past all that “to be a man you must be tough and unemotional” stuff as pure bs and just focus on being the best you is the quickest way to not fall into that existential quandary that can only be filled by modeling yourself after a human trafficker.
Oh yeah, enforcing traditional gender rolls is def something the antitrans folk are aiming for, especially the “women should know their places and be in the kitchen” aspect. It’s just that enforcement does harm how young men view how they fit in, especially those who do feel a need for validation.
Like, what I’m getting at is, from the sounds of thing, you probably wouldn’t be one of the ones finding yourself down the Andrew Tate pipeline if you were born into this generation, all things considered.
Comments
I was more focused on who I should be as a person, not as a man specifically tbh
Conservatives simultaneously get a scape goat, and a cudgel to push people back into their "traditional gender roles."