Walking along the pathway towards the Theology Building on campus a very rare spout of inspiration bestowed itself upon me; living as a male in society is not at all an easy task. Little did I know that my new-found epiphany would probably be put to the test in the almost immediate future! With a brisk walk towards the main entrance of the building I was presented with a situation in which a glass door was all that separated a young lady and myself. On any other day no amount of sporadic thoughts would have even begun to influence my impulsive motions. Would the polite act of opening a door for a woman be the basis for a feminist onslaught? Flashing back into reality I nervously opened the door, allowing the young lady to pass through with nothing but a silent smile of gratitude. I stood for a second confused over the fact that a simple thought transformed me into an ever so slightly neurotic and paranoid mess. Could it really be that my ideologies, constructed through a life of ‘gentlemanly’ upbringing and education in a traditional all-boys school, would today be reconsidered? The answer to this was most definitely: Yes!
We live in a society that has come a long way socially, traditionally and technologically. An ever changing environment conflicting with a combination of indoctrinated beliefs and practices from sub-cultures and society makes living as a young adult more challenging than ever. The ‘Age of The Gentleman’ has passed presenting a unique and exciting culture for all to conform and mingle with: The Modern Age. Ambiguous as it might seem I believe that without knowing it, a lot of young men struggle on in life juggling the balance between survival and conflict with the opposite sex.
Until a fairly recent and gradual change, a male based society left women terribly out of touch and for many years each person had their expected role to play. I for one am happy to see that in most Western based societies women have been given recognition for their previously down played abilities. This also however presents a challenge for those of us firmly standing behind the notion of semi-traditional roles involving interaction with the opposite sex. This in context could mean that it is supposedly the man’s duty to pursue the affection and approval of a woman during courtship. Have we not moved away from a role based relationship idea? The simple act of a man opening a door for a woman, or the offering of his jacket could make a difference in how one is viewed by those around you. Why would it be that although we live in an age where men and women alike are seen as equal, certain elements of somewhat frowned upon behaviour have kept their place in our lives? Perhaps we are biologically obligated to pursue certain activities in life, or perhaps there is a lot we still need to learn. Maybe we just need to take a step back and look at the broader picture; within good taste of course. Let us consider the fact that maybe without knowing it the men of our generation are suffering from an acute form of sexism being ingeniously propagated to us every day.
It may sound absurd but, obviously depending on the situation and character, a ‘Modern Age’ man should consider whether or not humble actions would lead to a drastic conflict of interests. Feminist organisations believe women and men are born equal yet it seems as if this idea has created the base for much discrimination and confrontation.
In our everyday lives we are exposed to situations, news, and other content in the media leading us to believe that generally men feel they are superior to women. American pop culture and literature suggests in various situations that men could be the unfaithful and chauvinistic members of society. The feminist movement in the 1960’s probably achieved more than the liberation of women; one can carefully witness a brand new form of discrimination. An evolution of ideas and fusion of beliefs may have placed most men into a category of unmannered, rude “pigs”. The practice of placing these particular benchmarks onto a group of men in society is an outright discrimination that we seem to be completely unaware of!
Why should we live in a society that for some reason insists on using differences between women and men to run certain elements of everyday life? Women and men have their differences but we are all human, let us embrace each other and love our fellow human beings!
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