How to cure a feminist and make her a "real woman"? These four steps were recommended by a well-known medium
It wasn't just the Critical Media Project website that took notice of an eighteen-year-old article - or rather, an article from Maxim magazine in November 2003. It raised some rather pressing questions:
1. What negative connotations exist around the label/word "feminist"? What are the stereotypes associated with feminists as perceived by the general public?
2. What labels do women in general face?
3. What does it actually mean to be a "real woman/girl"?
4. Why does it even occur to anyone that feminists have to be "treated" as if it were a disease?
5. What does such an article in Maxim say not only about the medium itself, but also about its readers?
But in turn: what, then, is it about? The article, which you can see in a scanned version here, set out to describe in four steps how men should behave towards feminists in order to change them. In simple terms, it celebrates male dominance and certainly doesn't even pretend to support female autonomy or perhaps the right to make their own decisions. Whatever the intent of the article was - even if it was just to entertain - it is simply a bit over the top. Read below how, translated into English, Maxim instructed men to act:
How to Cure a Feminist: Turn an unshaven, militant, protesting vegan into a real girl! (Yes, that's really the title.)
Step 1: Win her over
A feminist is just like any other woman: she won't give you the time of day if you don't know how to get close to her. To prove you're not part of the dreaded penisocracy, pretend you share her beliefs. Hide your lack of real knowledge about feminist issues and show her how much you respect her views by asking intelligent questions like, "What does a woman have to do to earn equal pay for equal work?" or "Did Gloria Steinem's* marriage hurt the feminist agenda?" or "Did you see Cagney and Lacey last night?"
*GloriaSteinem is a feminist activist. She got married in 2000. Since marriage has always been a big issue for her, the fact that she decided to become part of an institution she criticized has attracted a lot of attention.
The move is illustrated by a photograph of a dishevelled woman with hairy armpits, a pulled-up tank top, no shoes and a cigarette in her mouth. Her head is depicted with an outraged bubble: 'There would be no more wars if all penises were cut off! Ugh!"
Step 2: Open her eyes
Don't wait for her to start thinking differently herself - give her some opinions. Start by discussing "lipstick" feminism*, which is much more manageable than the combat-boot variety. "She can be a girly-girl and still be a feminist," explains Jennifer Baumgardner, co-author of Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future , " There's no need to shy away from things like shopping, makeup, or partners." Don't you think she's ready to subscribe to Maxim already? Sign her up for Bust - a lightweight feminist magazine that says women can be independent, strong and relatively hairless.
*This is third-wave feminism that highlights traditional concepts of femininity. In simplistic terms, this movement holds that make-up and sexy clothes do not make a woman less feminist.
The model example here is a woman in sneakers, pants, a buttoned jacket, no makeup, and hair tucked behind her ear, who is supposed to think of whoever got her to take the second step, "Maybe you're not as much of a slacker as my absent father."
Step 3: Treat her right
Once a relationship is established, you should treat the feminist just like any other girl you've been interested in, advises Baumgardner. As long as you're not arrogant, she won't object to opening the door occasionally or paying the bill. Then open her repressed Malibu Barbie fantasy and buy her a tight-fitting tank top with the word FEMINIST printed on the chest from outspokenclothing.com. Tell her she looks great - but avoid phrases like "bold boobs".
Here, the model has already stripped down to a playful skirt and a skimpy T-shirt. The coquettishly smiling young woman with pigtails says: "I think the man completes me."
Zdroj: Giphy
Step 4. Shift her attention
In order to manage to spend time with her, you'll need to shift her feminist interests elsewhere. "Focus on things you have in common," recommends Michele Weiner-Davis, author of The Sex-Hungry Marriage . "Does she like softball? Take her to a major-league game. Is she an unwavering environmentalist? Go camping. Does she support a woman's right to reject the outdated mores of our male-dominated society? Tell her to step up to your microphone.
Here, the illustration no longer dealt with clothing, and the girl stripped down to her titillating red underwear. She looks sensually from the magazine page directly into the eyes of the reader, to whom she is trying to say, "Your Camaro turns me on!"
There. Done. Now you, too, know the complete guide to dealing with such a feminist and changing her life forever. You're welcome.
