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Misogyny: 9 attitudes that portray misogynists

Misogyny: 9 attitudes that portray misogynists

February 28, 2024

Misogyny is a concept used to refer to the hatred, more or less disguised, towards women and girls .

Keep in mind that misogyny is only an idea that describes real behaviors of real people, and therefore only exists through the actions of certain people.

Characteristics and attitudes of misogynists

Recognizing misogynists is necessary in order to relativize their behavior and to educate respect for all people, regardless of their physical characteristics.

Below you can see what are the main characteristics, attitudes and propensities of misogynistic individuals .


1. Cosification of the woman's body

Perceiving women as objects is one of the main characteristics of misogynists . The reification causes that, on the one hand, the woman is considered as an object used to obtain pleasure and to raise, and on the other, she is reduced value as a human being, making that in the eyes of the misogynistic people the woman only worth because of their "functions" and not because of their human condition.

It should be noted that reifying is not recognizing the physical attractiveness of a person, but reducing their entire identity to aesthetic or functional properties, as would be the case with any tool in the home.


2. Selective Puritanism

Another characteristic of misogynists is his tendency to selectively use a puritanical morality when it comes to sexuality ; specifically, they apply it only when judging the behavior of women. That is why they denigrate women who dress or act in a way that is considered provocative, while ignoring this phenomenon in the case of men.

The logic behind these types of thoughts is simple: as the value of women is basically related to the aesthetic and their ability to give offspring, everything that can be interpreted as a tendency to "share" these two qualities with someone other than the couple dilutes the value of the one who does it. Man, however, has value beyond his appearance and reproductive role, so nothing happens if he expresses his sexuality in a more or less visible way.


3. Tendency to encourage other people to cosify

Misogyny is not something that is used to living in isolation, but rather is linked to a way of seeing the things that you try to share with others . That makes, for example, that in misogynists it is usual to encourage other people to make derogatory or unpleasant comments about strangers passing by.

4. Use of sexist violence

The use of sexist violence, be it physical, verbal or symbolic, is the most obvious manifestation of misogyny. This type of violence is directed towards women in a systematic way because it is so, and is one of the main reasons why feminism vindicates the need to guarantee women's rights.

5. Systematic criminalization of victims of sexist violence

Misogynists tend to seek responsibility for sexist violence in victims. They understand that these episodes of aggression are due to the fact that the woman does not care enough or provoke others with her way of dressing, or, simply, it is assumed that the accusations of violence are false without having consistent evidence that suggest that possibility.

In this way, a double objective is achieved. On the one hand, Violence against women is hidden , and on the other, the power that one has over the body of these is legitimized, by defending the idea that they must adapt to very defined gender roles.

6. Marginalization of women

It is not strange that misogynists tend to reject the idea of ​​relating to women beyond the professional sphere or economic transactions. At present there is even a movement called Men Go Their Own Way in which a lifestyle away from women and traditional marriage is claimed .

7. Authoritarian trends with women

Whenever there is the possibility of imposing one's will on a woman, misogynists do it . This does not mean that they use force; they can simply make capricious or absurd requests for the simple pleasure of seeing how they obey. In some way, it takes advantage of contexts in which man has power over women (such as at work) to use it far beyond what is justifiable. In the same way, there is a tacit agreement according to which the woman obeys, even in informal contexts in which there is no higher and lower charge.

8. Rejection of female leadership

Under the influence of misogyny, female leadership, or everything that implies giving visibility to women beyond their traditional roles, is seen with bad eyes . This can be reflected both in the business and organizational environment and, for example, in the criticism of works of fiction. Last year, for example, there was some controversy when part of the Internet community called for the boycott of the movie Mad Max: Fury Road for giving prominence and the role of hero to a character played by Charlize Theron.

In this way, a traditional view of things is defended in which the most important decisions are always made by men, and attempts to change this are seen as strident attempts to attract attention.

9. Tendency to relate the low forms of culture with the feminine

Another characteristic of misogynists is the propensity to consider that women consume minor forms of culture : bad novels, bad TV shows, bad songs, etc. This critical view of what most women consume does not apply when analyzing the forms of culture that men consume massively.


The Complicity of Geek Masculinity on the Big Bang Theory (February 2024).


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