An old one by Katie Roiphe about #MeToo, the narrative of sexual harassment and assault, and the complexity of reality, I discovered only now - and it's a gem

Deadlocked02 · 2021-08-29T22:06:58+00:00

Once I owned the book by Katie Roiphe criticizing the Dworkinian interpretation of sexual violence. Unfortunately I lent it to a feminist who never gave it back.

Let’s face it, she probably burned it.

On a more serious note, it’s an interesting article. As mentioned, there’s a very romanticized view of the #MeToo movement and of the idea of women coming forward with their stories and finding strength in each other. The narrative relies too much on feelings instead of facts and assumes the best of women and the worst of men. I’m actually negatively surprised when I see people in the MRM who believe the #MeToo movement was a good thing and that men need something similar.

It begins to feel as if the endgame of this project is not bringing to account powerful sexual bullies but, as a male acquaintance puts it, the “presumptive criminalization of all male sexual initiatives.”

And since the burden of romantic and sexual initiative falls completely on men, it puts them in a very complicated position. I often see guys asking for dating advice on the internet and some of the responses are so conflicting with the current climate. Things like suggesting men to go out and meet women in bookstores or cafes. It’s like people are completely oblivious to the climate of witch hunt out there and as if it’s 100% safe for a man to approach a woman in a place that is not necessarily meant for dating. My parents met at work and so did several other couples of their generation. I just can’t picture it today. The messages are very conflicting. One day, you’re told that you should go out and meet women in casual places or maybe even at work. The next one, there are women complaining about being hit on in those places.

There are also other good points, like the woman talking about how she believes that regretted consent is more common than people are willing to acknowledge or the part about virgin shaming and how some people believe that sexually frustrated men are the most dangerous ones (it really feels like much of the mainstream rhetoric is just an excuse to shame men they consider to be “low value”. Small dick, virgin, no money. Even though guys who are the antithesis of all this are equality capable of cruelty).

Thraap · 2021-08-29T22:41:36+00:00

What a great read!! Thanks for sharing this.

throwaway2222aa3 · 2021-08-29T21:23:23+00:00

This article still presupposes that women have been oppressed for "hundreds of years". This interpretation of history is formed by projecting liberal capitalist values backwards in time.

IpsenSpiegel · 2021-08-30T19:04:09+00:00

I loved the article and decided to share it on my limited social media. For me it's really on point.

Articles like this, so well written in my opinion, allow me to share critical thoughs about feminism without fear to being catallogued as some incel dude.

Title	An old one by Katie Roiphe about #MeToo, the narrative of sexual harassment and assault, and the complexity of reality, I discovered only now - and it's a gem
Author	Blauwpetje
Upvotes	80
Comments	24
Date	August 29, 2021 8:16 PM UTC (4 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/LeftWingMaleAdvocates
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/LeftWingMaleAdvocates/comments/pe2tqh/an_old_one_by_katie_roiphe_about_metoo_the/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/LeftWingMaleAdvocates/an-old-one-by-katie-roiphe-about-metoo-the.1066353 https://theredarchive.com/post/1066353

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