But not only do we control others through our words; we control others by the timing of our words. The same thing said in different contexts determine the meaning of the words. Smile! said by a photographer means something different than when it is said by a man to a woman who passes him on the street. Hence we find that catcalling is the close cousin of rape in as much as it assumes that a man has the right to demand access to a womans body, and that women have no right to object, for after all, women exist for men - another favorite of hierarchical theologians. Whether a man imposes himself on a woman through his words or with his body, the ultimate truth is that he assumes he has the right to do so simply because he is a man. But if a man has the right to impose himself on a woman simply because he is a man, why cant a man impose himself on another man simply because he is a man? What makes the woman the sole object of such unwanted attention? Is it not because women have something men want, that other men dont, and men feel entitled to that something? Whereas as another mans refusal to be imposed upon is seen as a demand for respect, the womans refusal is experienced as disrespect. And because of this illusion of disrespect, the man feels he has the right to extract from the woman what he feels entitled to by any means he sees fit. Thus we find that catcalling isnt about men being hardwired, or something men just do, for men dont catcall women they respect. A male employee wouldnt catcall the female president of the company he works for, nor would a man catcall the daughter of his best friend, regardless of her attractive appearance. In the end it all comes down to respect; men being unwilling to extend the same respect to women they take for granted. And that is not something men just do.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Dec 2014 23:27:36 +0000