What is the problem with all of this? I believe these kinds of view make men want to become more masculine and therefore more aggressive. In addition to being aggressive they will learn that they will have to do better than women because that is the sexual standard they have to meet. The feeling of being emasculated will threaten their masculinity. They need power to feel “manly”. Women on the other hand will feel scared to do anything outside their box as they don’t have the power men have.

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence is defined as “violent or aggressive behavior within the home”. It wasn’t until the contemporary feminist movement that domestic violence became a hot topic. Now, not only is domestic violence associated with male violence against women, but also same-sex relations and even children are victims of abuse by patriarchal violence (Patriarchal violence is the belief that a powerful individual has the right to control another who has less power).

If men are taught to be masculine, then this male to female violence at home will worsen. How will it worsen? Simply because men feel like they should be the most powerful. If women were to take masculine characteristics or roles then the men would feel like they are being overpowered. They would would feel like they are losing power just because women are gaining it.

Traditional Gender Role Effects

Men are naturally born as bigger and stronger than women. The idea that the man makes more money, has the better paying job, is stronger, and faster than the woman is the idea of being “masculine”. That is the ideal characteristics for men, while women are weaker, submissive, and make less money. Gloria Jean Watkins, also known as by her pen name bell hooks, writes in her article:

“As more men have entered the ranks of the employed or receive low wages and more women have entered the world of work, some men feel that the use of violence is the only way they can establish and maintain power and dominance within the sexist sex role hierarchy.”

To reiterate what I said earlier, if women start to gain power then the men will start to feel like they are losing power. To widen the power gap, some men will resort to violence to reassert their authority and presence. It is the norm in this sexist society that men have more power and that it’s acceptable that they can do what they mostly want. Resorting to violence will help them maintain their authority. If men aren’t taught to be masculine, they would not have to be aggressive or think that they have to do better than women. If this is the case, then we would have many egalitarian relationships at home. Less violence will occur since both parties will see each other eye to eye, power-wise.

Roosh V and Neomasculinity

Going back to Roosh V, he coins the term neomasculinity. He defines it as:

“Neomasculinity combines traditional beliefs, masculinity, and animal biology into one ideological system. It aims to aid men living in Westernized nations that lack qualities such as classical virtue, masculinity in males, femininity in females, and objectivity, especially concerning beauty ideals and human behavior.”

With all of his views and beliefs, would you take rape prevention advice from this guy? Would you even take it as a joke? His anti feminist views and ‘men-are-suppose-to-be-masculine’ thinking further widens the gap between men and women equality. It even promotes violence. With feminist thinking, these horrific truths of domestic violence are exposed. Since men are supposed to be more powerful than women, that gives them the authority to do as they please.

The Push For Equal Power

Domestic violence is mostly associated with male to female violence for a reason. The traditional gender ideas of how men and women should act or think pushes this problem. To prevent it, we can’t just say that men just act like men and women should think smarter. One gender is not more powerful than the other. If you believe so then the domestic violence issue will not improve.

We need to be able to start thinking that power doesn’t come from one’s gender identity. A man does not have higher authority than a woman, and a woman does not have higher authority than a man. If we see each other as regular human beings without seeing how much power one has, then we wouldn’t have to assert our dominance through some sort of violence. With open minds and egalitarian thinking, domestic problems can be alleviated.