Men's Emotions
Pretty much everywhere around the world parrots the same stereotype: When it comes to emotions, men are expected to not show any. And this is how we came to the myth that men don't have emotions.
Personally, throughout my life, I have rarely seen any men cry. If you ever do see a man cry, it feels like seeing something you're not supposed to see. Seeing your dad cry feels like the world is ending. But, the same can't be said about about women. Although, seeing a woman cry is still sad, it doesn't feel nearly as taboo. Because of societal norms and expectations, these stereotypes continue to exist along with its adverse effects. In reality, men and women don't have much emotional difference.
Some many years ago, the idea of stoicism was created; The idea of enduring hardships without complaint. Rightfully so, times were a lot tougher then. In times of war, famine, and disease, crying doesn't help the situation. If you think about Greek statues or paintings, they only show men who are seen as strong, capable, and masculine. Traditionally, men are the laborers and workers of the family, so these character traits help to fulfill their duty. Crying or showing emotions of tenderness would be an attack to a man's masculinity. It is clear that this idea has been passed along history, and still exists today.
The few times men show tenderness, they are labeled as weak and incompetent. For example, when Will Smith's wife admitted to having an affair, he was shown crying and immediately became a meme. It's things like this that keep this dangerous stereotype alive.
While it is hard to measure emotion, studies show that there isn't a significant difference between men and women, although men tend to hide it better.
The stereotype of men don't have emotions or men shouldn't cry has many consequences. As seen in the global suicide rate, with over a 2:1 ratio between men and women, societal expectations and pressures definitely do exist. These myths don't benefit anyone, and only serve to damage society as a whole.
I agree with the idea that this stereotype is generally harmful. The stupid idea that emotions are seen as weak or worse just creates a dangerous cycle of people not being able to open up in fear of endangering their masculinity, just as the suicide rates you've mentioned.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you used the statistic of suicide ratios to support your claim and how you used the idea of the Greek statues and the historical role of men in the family to show why this idea that men can’t have emotions exists.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the topic you chose to talk about especially considering how its not talked about enough. The stereotype is so unreasonable. Great evidence!
ReplyDeleteI liked how you used the suicide rate to support your claim as it also was surprising to me that the suicide rate was twice more for men than women. I also liked how you included the meme as it shows how people modernly oust men when they show emotion compared to the old days like the Greeks.
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