On the "Male Privilege"

Lightfiend · 2013-02-22T16:08:26+00:00

Your confusion with the term "male privilege" probably stems from the fact that most people use it as a meaningless buzzword.

Do men experience certain privileges based on their sex? Sure. But so do women. Do men experience certain forms of oppression based on their sex? Yes, there's that too. And so do women.

"Male privilege" is really just a convenient way for feminists to talk about gender stereotypes without acknowledging all the other sides of the story. It's a way to keep the whole "male is the oppressor, female is the oppressed" mindset alive, without looking at all the nuances of oppression.

Please note: There's no term for the "female privilege" of historically not being expected to fight wars, or be disposable at work. That's because the concept of "privilege" isn't often used as a tool of critical analysis, but a way to propagate a certain one-sided narrative.

Ubermage · 2013-02-22T16:49:42+00:00

I know its probably a popular opinion by now, but i'm sick and tired of the word privilege.

Its become the ultimate insult to men, somehow, and its getting annoying.

ChaosAgents1 · 2013-02-22T14:53:54+00:00

give this a read:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Male_privilege

One of the benefits of wikipedia, is that you generally can't site a blog as a source.

matt_512 · 2013-02-22T17:53:59+00:00

Basically the author asserts that men have a privilege in society because their wives take their last names?

They probably view the patriarchy as the proof that male privilege exists. The patriarchy has various meanings, depending on which feminist you ask and other factors such as what they had for breakfast, the position of the stars, and which definition benefits them the most in the current argument. A few of the common ones:

Society in which the male name is passed down.
Society where the people on the top are male.
A power structure which systemically advantages males and disadvantages females.
- However, "The patriarchy hurts men, too!" Talk about mental gymnastics!
- When you take into account male disposability and the apex fallacy this doesn't hold much water.
- Something to watch out for is when they talk about definition three, but when confronted say, "But the patriarchy just says women take on their husbands names you can't deny that!" (definition one)
- Edit: that last bullet point was probably what happened to you, if I understand you correctly.

mcSibiss · 2013-02-22T18:30:03+00:00

Men have privileges in some domains (less and less) and women have privileges in other domains (more and more) but they only acknowledge men privileges. This double standards pisses me off to no end.

PerniciousOne · 2013-02-22T18:47:58+00:00

Feminists have coined the term "male privilege" as a means of shaming a male when they do not like the content of their discussion. They feel that it is a sufficient put down, which will shut down most males discussions and viewpoints.

Saying that all men have privilege is bonkers because the "privilege" that they are desiring and seeking is only held by 1-2% of the male population. The rest of males are invisible to them, and they only care about them when they are abusing or raping them.

rightsbot · 2013-02-22T14:52:17+00:00

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blinderzoff · 2013-02-22T23:00:06+00:00

Because CEOs and Politicians. Plus, rape culture.

Pay no attention to workplace fatalities, the homeless, prison populations, relative suicide rates, etc.

QuickerPickerUpper · 2013-02-22T18:40:05+00:00

So what? They don't have to take his name. My wife took my name because she wanted to. I wouldn't have cared if she did or not, but she has a very complicated Polish maiden name and my last name is extremely simple to spell/pronounce.

Title	On the "Male Privilege"
Author	ChaosAgents1
Upvotes	27
Comments	41
Date	February 22, 2013 2:51 PM UTC (13 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MensRights
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/mensrights/comments/190tg6/on-the-male-privilege/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MensRights/on-the-male-privilege.1606776 https://theredarchive.com/post/1606776

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