Apparently Shakespeare Was a Male Misandrist

AfghanistanIsTaliban · 2026-07-18T01:27:11+00:00

It's clearly used ironically and to mock the protagonist (Edit: still won't change the fact that misandrists will interpret it otherwise 😐)

Crazy-Crazy-3593 · 2026-07-18T02:31:35+00:00

The reaction of the hero/protagonist of the play, Benedick, to hearing that song is:

"And he had been a dog that should have howled thus, they would have hanged him."

So is Shakespeare's opinion what Balthasar sings, or Benedick's reaction?

Neither one. Benedick is eavesdropping on Don Pedro and Balthasar, but they know he's eavesdropping, and the song is part of their plot to get Benedick together with Beatrice, by shaming him into taking her more seriously as a potential wife.

Actual point: it's extremely disenguous and, frankly, stupid, to take what a writer says in the persona of a character as the writer's true feeling.

Title	Apparently Shakespeare Was a Male Misandrist
Author	meeralakshmi
Upvotes	12
Comments	7
Date	July 17, 2026 11:25 PM UTC (5 days ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/EverydayMisandry
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/everydaymisandry/comments/1uzflgg/apparently_shakespeare_was_a_male_misandrist/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/EverydayMisandry/apparently-shakespeare-was-a-male-misandrist.1585295 https://theredarchive.com/post/1585295

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