help but wonder, why had there been an implicit expectation that I was the one who should offer my seat to this woman? If we were all presumed equal why wasn’t it possible that my lady friend could also give up her seat? How could it be that my masculinity was suddenly questioned but not once was her femininity not questioned?
Which raised another question- is the token idea of a damsel in distress the supposed role model women are guided to play in society and does that on some level explain the patriarchal roles one so often sees reiterated in popular culture where it is always up to the man to show he is deserving of his lady’s love because of his willingness to show masculine virtue?
Or to once again put it in brusque terms- did boy get girl because he could prove he was worthy of her affection and did girl get boy because she was picture perfect and complicit in her subordinate role of letting some male save her?
Personally I think I did the right thing that day by not giving up my seat, but to be honest I don’t know if I am willing to suffer in silence next time I come across the same situation.
As my father used to say while I was growing up- ‘Suck it up and just be a man about it.’
Whatever being a man really means anyway….
Time to apply some logic and flip things around:
“Why don’t you just be a woman about it!?” Trying to figure out if a woman should stay in the kitchen barefoot & pregnant…
In Perth WA, the public transport system carries notices saying “students using the fifty cent fare should stand for adults.” The link between the reduced fare (advantage) and the obligation to stand if not enough seats are available (disadvantage) makes the fairness of the situation evident.
Ask yourself “Did I pay a reduced fare?” If not, then why should I not receive the same service as a lady.
Of course, if someone NEEDS the seat (pregnant, disabled, carrying a baby etc.) then it is reasonable to expect to stand for the.
Since women want equalty, why not give it to them in spades: http://goo.gl/cWnyW