Thursday, January 03, 2008

Shakes On Feminism



Shakes has written a thoughtful essay on feminism as one solution to the question how women react to the message of themselves as "less than." She mentions several different coping strategies (other than feminism which I find the healthiest), but I'm not sure if her list covers denial. It's not just a river in Egypt but a major coping mechanism for many women.

Another coping strategy is the "honorary man" device. It goes something like this: "Sure, women are harebrained and over-emotional and untrustworthy and sly and weak and sinful and... But I'm not! I'm just like the guys! In fact, I AM a guy!"