I've been thinking about these topics since the recent Gillette ad and my ex-girlfriend's messages which got me angry again at the world and feminine nature.
Yes, toxic masculinity exists - as does toxic femininity as well. I think part of our growth process is to decipher what makes these archetypes toxic and how can we work with ourselves to limit their spread.
In my opinion, toxic *whatever* is about abuse of power. Masculinity has its own strengths, as does femininity. Male energy is active, hot, self-reliant. Feminine energy is passive, cold, dependent.
In an ideal world, they would work together - but in this world they mostly fight each other and support each other when it suits their best interests in a mute, subliminal power struggle.
I think toxic masculinity revolves around violence (be it physical, verbal, psychological or emotional) used for subjugating other people. The need to establish dominance just for a man to have access to more resources is, indeed, toxic. In the same time, women use the same tactic (via physical seduction and emotional manipulation) to extract more resources - so women ARE toxic when they have an inner toxic masculinity.
Toxic femininity revolves around manipulation (physical, verbal, psychological and emotional) used for subjugating other people. The need to play mind games, perception wars and emotional blackmails in order to gain more access to resources is toxic, in my own opinion. Of course, men can do this as well - so men ARE toxic when they have an inner feminine masculinity.
Because we live in a darwinian world, every individual tries to maximize their influence via their strengths and minimize their weaknesses. Because culturally the West is in shambles and there are no "traditional" or healthy roles any more, we're left with chaos and even more power struggles between individuals - ESPECIALLY in intersexual relationships.
We can see power struggles between men, as well as between women. Because they're stuck in a toxic competitive mindset, they're trying to gain as much advantages as possible while putting others down.
Thanks for reading, this is my first post on Reddit. Thoughts?
