Women across America are rising up against male sexual
predators. They are calling out harassers and reasserting their dignity.
As Martha Stewart was wont to remark: It’s a good thing.
And now, to respond to the constant feminist complaints
about manspreading, some young women-- fashion models, no less-- have decided that what’s
good for men is good for women. They have taken up the practice of womanspreading.
It’s an Instagram trend.
Apparently, it makes them feel empowered… just as so many
women felt empowered by marching in the streets wearing what they called
pussyhats. That will surely cause everyone to respect them for their minds!
The New York Post has the story, via The Sun:
Womanspreading
is the latest trend taking Instagram by storm and is likely to be filling your
feed in 2018.
The
“power stance” pose sees women sitting with their legs spread open in front of
the camera — fully clothed we hasten to add.
Models
like Bella Hadid and Kaia Gerber are leading the way with the wide leg
position.
The
pose is designed to empower women, as it bucks the tradition of sitting poised
with your knees together.
The
stance is usually considered by many to be “unladylike” but these stars are
unfazed.
The writer could not resist pointing out that
this “power pose” is not really a power pose. It’s a bluff. Let’s hope that no
one calls them on it. Since the writer feels constrained to point out that this “power
pose” requires that women be clothed—actually, wearing pants would be more
appropriate—the implication is that it is not quite as empowering as they
imagine.
One is shocked but not surprised to see that young women
really believe that spreading their legs suggestively will make them more
powerful. It does not. It makes them more vulnerable. The notion that gestures
mean whatever you want them to mean is one of the grand illusions of our time.
True enough, the knees-together pose was more ladylike, but,
what was wrong with being more ladylike? Were women more likely to be harassed
when they were acting more ladylike or when they are sitting at a meeting or on
the subway with their legs spread?
A thought for today….
Stuart: True enough, the knees-together pose was more ladylike, but, what was wrong with being more ladylike? Were women more likely to be harassed when they were acting more ladylike or when they are sitting at a meeting or on the subway with their legs spread?
ReplyDeleteWe know the term "legs spread" for women suggests an invitation for sexual advances, so women can hope the opposite, that "knees together" will protect them from harassment? Apparently this hasn't worked.
I've always wondered about the use of the term "lady", suggesting a status higher than mere woman, although requiring certain behavior call "ladylike". The term "gentleman" is used less often in an attempt to control the behavior of a gender although of course we never hear of the term "gentlemanspreading" because gentlemen would apparently never do that.
If I were to make a suggestion, it would be stop with all the contempt against men, with terms like manspreading, mansplaing which attempt to shame a man for not being afraid to be comfortable or to speak. But if ending contempt means allowing women their own experimentation in speaking and acting in public, I'm happy to let them be, and not tell them its not ladylike. Deal?
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Amusingly, in this case, it's cargo cult imitation.
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