Does mansplaining really exist?

2020-10-09T16:20:33+00:00

Talking down to people is definitely a thing, and if you internally tend to view women as inferior to you more often than men, you may talk down to women more often.

I’ve realized that I do it much more to women my age than I do men my age. Although I’m better now that I’ve become more self-aware

flamingoinghome · 2020-10-09T16:12:30+00:00

Oh no, it's real.

To give some examples:

-A friend of mine being told by a guy who'd visited her hometown for two days on a trip that she knew less about what living there was like than he did

-My having a man in an unrelated field of history calmly and patiently explain some very basic, not-entirely-accurate things about the social and religious politics of World War One, a subject I've been published on

-The number of times European men have told me they know more than me about American politics because they read a BBC article on it

Grave_Heresy · 2020-10-09T17:55:17+00:00

I'm just going to give you a translation of Mansplaining along with all of the rest of the lingo implemented by the "Woke" of the world.

Mansplaining - when a man disagrees with a woman.

Manspreading - when a man doesn't crush his own testicles or put inordinate strain on his hips.

Manterrupting - if a man interrupts a woman.

Himpathy - when people feel sorry for men who are accused of doing something to offend/hurt a woman

Toxic Masculinity - when a man does something that a woman doesn't like

Patriarchy - when men perform better than women in a specific field.

Misogyny - anything that a f÷minist dislikes.

Equality - when women do better than men in every facet of society.

Equity - Equality of outcome for women sans equality of contribution

Sexism - when a man does something that doesn't directly benefit women

Internalized sexism: when a woman questions the truth value of any claim made by radical third wave intersectional feminism.

goatismycopilot · 2020-10-09T16:54:55+00:00

I have more had the experience of men talking over me at meetings at work or or asking me a question then going ahead and talking themselves to answer the question they asked me. I have notice men are more likely to be confidently wrong. Like they do not actually know what they are talking about but sound like they do. I use different tactics to manage it depending on the person and situation. Men also talk over other men sometimes I will use that to get an important piont in.

Cimorene86 · 2020-10-09T16:44:15+00:00

I've worked in two male dominated fields, one for 10 years as a manager, the other currently as a territory representative for the last 2 years. In all that time, I've only experienced mansplaining by a single coworker who was actually a lower position than myself.

He was 20 years older, and had incredibly traditionalist views about gender roles. It didn't really help that he was also a Christian who believed in creationism, so he literally thought that women were "designed" by god for procreation, submission, and childbearing, whereas men were "crafted" exclusively for protection, leadership, and providing. He took a lot of smug pleasure in deliberately talking over me, and "explaining" things regarding the business that I obviously already knew since I had seniority by 6 years there.

Other than that, no. I've been condescended to by other men and women, but nothing else even close to that particular douche-nozzle.

wtknight · 2020-10-09T16:46:58+00:00

I’m not sure if I’ve ever mansplained before, but women explain things to men that they that they are more knowledgeable about to men too. The phenomenon is not some kind of man thing but a human thing.

MostCharmingChicken · 2020-10-09T16:44:01+00:00

Explaining something in a condescending tone exists, interupting exists, manspaining does not exist. It's a made up word that's designed to blame the gender and immutable characteristics of the speaker rather than the action itself. If anyone unironically uses this word I immidieatly lose all respect for them and faith in their intelligence.

2020-10-09T18:58:11+00:00

Of course not. It’s something a bunch of inferior women made up after being being confronted on their ignorance. They are not able to take direct criticism. A new rallying cry was needed to comfort them and “mansplaining” was created.

psypD · 2020-10-09T19:19:06+00:00

No It absolutely does not exists. It is a 100% sexist term and is always used in bad faith. That said condescending asshats exist and anyone will encounter a few of both genders.

SaBahRub · 2020-10-09T17:32:54+00:00

It just means “I, a man, know more about your female feelings/existence/experiences and how you should live your lives than you, a woman”

For example, on this sub, when dudes claim that “women don’t know what they want” or “women want this even though they say they don’t”

DicamVeritatem · 2020-10-09T18:39:17+00:00

My observation is that mansplaining is what a woman accuses a man of whenever she has 100% lost an argument and has nothing else to say.

That’s my honest to goodness experience with this subject.

passepar2t · 2020-10-09T16:10:46+00:00

Talking down to people as if they're idiots exists.

The actual term "mansplaining" is a convenient way to shut down and vilify any man talking about anything at any point. Women like it because it works, it's punchy and it's hard to make a good comeback on the spot.

SonicBackScratcher · 2020-10-09T16:21:06+00:00

Mansplaning exists in men who just think women are dumb and treat them as such.

Mansplaning as a social media thing is when ever a woman gets upset a man doesn't agree with her or knows something shes doesn't.

12112019 · 2020-10-09T16:57:03+00:00

Anyways I’ve always truly believed that “mansplaining” was just more SJW feminist bs

Exactly it is a way to shut down debate, usually by women on the left who can't defend their ideas.

thelajestic · 2020-10-09T19:07:33+00:00

I tend to just see it as patronising, condescending etc. I certainly have found I'm much more commonly talked down to by men than women though - but that may be from working in a traditionally male dominated role. As well as that I'm short so people often assume I'm younger and presumably more stupid than I am.

I particularly get it when helping men with technical issues. We had a lot of technical set up stuff for transitioning to homeworking and while I was widely recognised to be the expert in it, I had lots of guys just assume they knew better than me and not listen to what I was telling them to do. Then when it didn't work they'd argue against me when I told them how to fix it. In fairness, they also ignored the very clear setup manual so at least it wasn't just me 😅

Thatshygurl · 2020-10-09T19:32:50+00:00

[deleted]

SeemedGood · 2020-10-10T01:34:49+00:00

No.

Look up the story of how the woman who coined the phrase came up with it. It should be embarrassing to anyone that’s ever used the term.

Iluvalmonds83 · 2020-10-09T16:21:26+00:00

I’ve been mansplained before, a long time ago when I was working in retail mgmt under one of the major cellphone providers. My tech was trying to explain to an irate customer that we could not reset the enterprise server controlled screen password on his company provided blackberry, which he had locked out himself by forgetting and trying too many times to guess the password to. Had to intervene and explain WHY we couldn’t override the enterprise server settings ( I mean, they’re up there for a reason to prevent the very thing he was trying to have is do). He then condescendingly explained to me how I obviously don’t understand how work phones operate, and that my store COULD and WILL find a way without getting his company’s IT involved, or give him a new phone( an iPhone of course because that’s what he fancied over what his company gave him) on his company work number free of charge (he’s nowhere on the account as an authorized user to make such changes) and reset up his company’s exchange server setup(something only his IT group can do) on this new device.

He wouldn’t accept “get help from your company’s IT department “ as the answer to his issues.

I could go on, but there was another instance where an elderly guy needed help in accessing his online account. He was still using a really old version of Mozilla that the website no longer supported and he was adamant that I was wrong in telling him that this was a browser compatibility issue and he needed to use a browser that works, or conveniently access it on his cellphone browser(this was before smartphone apps became a thing). He swore to me the website itself wasn’t functioning. Had to pull up the website on a laptop in the store and show him, using a compatible browser, that it was running and again this was a him problem. Then got pulled into an argument about WHY technology has to change over time . I was so underpaid.

There were plenty of outright “I don’t work with women sales reps because they don’t know how to conduct business” and “you’re not a real manager, go get that guy over there to help me” customers in my tenure with the company.

crookedsummer2019 · 2020-10-09T16:40:15+00:00

I personally haven’t ever experienced it and don’t know if it’s that wide spread because I don’t hear about from my circle nor witness it that often at all, maybe once or twice. But I work in a female dominated industry though.

My understanding of mansplaining is when a man explains something in a patronizing way to a woman who actually already knows about the topic and sometimes knows more about it than he does, and he just assumes that she doesn’t know.

For example I once witnessed what people typically label as mansplaining when a guy at a bar was explaining to a a girl a particular power play move during the NHL playoffs (which was on the TV at the bar). He was talking to her like she had never watched hockey. He didn’t know that this girl not only watched hockey, but won an Olympic gold medal for Canada, in hockey.

Hoopy223 · 2020-10-09T18:42:03+00:00

Nope just more man-hater bullshit.

jdobrila · 2020-10-10T05:24:27+00:00

Well, just look at the examples in this thread so far. It's mostly people being rude and/or stupid.

But because the other party is a woman, rather than simply assuming the person in question is rude and/or stupid, they automatically assume the position of a victim and see it as some kind of deliberate attack on themselves. As is tradition.

rosephase · 2020-10-09T16:21:34+00:00

I have had drunk men try and tell me how to use my equipment while I was working. I’ve had a man explain how driving works while I was driving him. I’ve had a dude push past me and start flipping random breakers at my work because ‘it’s fine, Im an electrician’.

I wouldn’t call it ‘mansplaining’ I would call it being a jerk and assuming I’m an idiot because I’m female.

jackandjill22 · 2020-10-09T16:37:07+00:00

No /Thread

AutoModerator · 2020-10-09T16:07:34+00:00

Attention!

You can post off topic/jokes/puns as a comment to this Automoderator message.
For "CMV" and "Question for X" Threads: Parent comments that aren't from the target group will be removed, along with their child replies.
If you want to agree with OP instead of challenging their view or if the question is not targeted at you, post it as an answer to this comment.
OP you can choose your own flair according to these guidelines., just press Flair under your post!

Thanks for your cooperation and enjoy the discussion!

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

Sir_manalot · 2020-10-09T16:29:47+00:00

[deleted]

SuperPutin54 · 2020-10-09T16:44:25+00:00

I don't know about "mansplained" in the buzzfeed version of the term. But, I am a woman that works as a software developer for a defense contractor (very male dominated). I definitely get talked down to more often than my male colleagues. I don't know if that's a man problem or an asshole problem.

ninja_deli · 2020-10-09T19:50:52+00:00

It's a mixed bag. Yes of course it exists, I've heard it myself (I'm a man). However, the SJW feminist crowd has begun labelling any time a man says anything, or explains anything (even if it's not demonstrative or demeaning) as mansplaining. It's crossed a line to the point that I tend to just roll my eyes and discount the phrase all together when it's used, which sucks because men do do it. This is my reaction now though because the vast majority of the time it's just being used now to shut men up in general. Take for example, the VP debate, I heard plenty of liberals shouting that Pence was mansplaining. I didn't actually listen to the debate...but...IT'S A DEBATE!!! You are supposed to explain things, your take, your side, your position, why you believe what you believe, why you think the other person on the stage is wrong etc. And yes...you are supposed to do that even if you are a man debating a woman. It's just everything is getting silly and going overboard. Mansplaining is bad. Saying it's happening every time a man speaks is also just as bad. Society is getting more and more extreme, it's getting stupid, frankly. Take the PC Cancel Culture. Political correctness as a way of not unnecessarily hurting people is a great idea. However, It's been taken to an extreme with people trying to literally ruin people's lives over someone's opinions that may or may not be inflammatory. And even if they are, do they deserve to lose their whole job and livelihood? Anyway, I'm done ranting lol. Everything is just getting to extreme and dogmatic nowadays.

yuckfounumbdiggger · 2020-10-09T20:44:55+00:00

My sjw girlfriend mansplains shit all the time smh.

Workaholiconew · 2020-10-09T20:48:15+00:00

I like to think it was a feminist misunderstanding which got out of hand.

They think that men trying to be helpful by giving useful information/solving problems (probably in order to get sexual favors) is some way to diminish women (instead of elevating them). So any man who tries to explain anything (and worse, in a objective and mathematical way, interrupting their monologue) is somehow trying to diminish them, instead of helping them understand the world.

Some women seem to not understand that men like to talk about useful things, and only useful things (Yes, sex, football and cars is useful in our eyes). And that when we hear something absurd, and we care about this person well being, we explain our understanding, in order to help them. Some women seen to not comprehend that there can be other views and that you don't need to convince others about your own (or the social) view. (we go against the social all the time, it has little weight on our minds) Which leads to this grave misunderstanding. and like in a game of telephone, it became bigger and bigger, leading to this absurd concept called mansplaining.

2020-10-09T23:22:41+00:00

Working in tech, software developer, for 4 years. I've seen it on average, at least once a month. It's real. Am a man.

I knew it was mansplaining when I witnessed a developer get all condescending and explaining super simple shit to our project manager. She understood everything he was saying because I had trained her on the platform like, 3 months before and I've done touchbases with her on key features for requirements.

This guy was just explaining shit and I remember thinking "Why is he explaining any of this? She didn't even ask for all this..." and it occurred to me, he only spoke to her this way. The rest of the team is men and he never speaks to them that way and he also doesn't speak to the other project manager that way either (the other PM is a man).

It's prevalent. Depends on environment, workspace, culture... a bunch of shit. But it's absolutely real... I've also seen some racist bullshit too where we had a DBA question whether the Indian developer we were considering hiring actually "knew his stuff", because "you know they make crap over there.." and the candidate passed the fucking technical interview...

2020-10-09T23:42:51+00:00

Oh it's real. I had some electrical problems in my old apartment but I had them figured out since I am not an idiot- but I stupidly posted about this on my Livejournal and two of my male friends then decided to explain to me how an electrical socket can be tested using a lamp. Like I was too dumb to know that. Also, did you know you can test which socket is linked to the light switch??! Oh wow, thanks for explaining that to me!

And what made it worse is the next time I saw one of these guys, he brought me a device to test electrical sockets like I needed that for some reason. Thanks.

Sid_Insidious · 2020-10-10T02:07:27+00:00

When a man talks down to a woman regarding a subject because he assumes, as a man, he's naturally more adept at that subject than she is because she is a woman, that's mansplaining.

Feminists now use the term every time a man is simply trying to make a point, or is merely speaking, and -and such- the word has lost all relevant meaning, along with all kinds of other words feminists water down into nothingness.

mae1995111 · 2020-10-10T02:17:22+00:00

Yes but women forget that a man that mansplains also mansplains to other men.

WilliamWyattD · 2020-10-10T02:48:29+00:00

I think mansplaining is more a case of typical male-male communication methods. I think it can be a problem in that men should try to be more aware of typical female communication methods and see if there can be some adjustment that brings out the best in everyone. But if a man were to act the same way women who get mansplained to do, he would probably get treated the same way.

That said, the kind of patronizing talk and presumptions about the recipients lack of competence based prematurely without evidence is not the best feature of the male communication style, which does tend to involve some dominance posturing. I think both male and female communication styles have different strengths and weaknesses, but typically what is called mansplaining is not usually one of the better aspects of the male style.

RedPill_is_a_cult · 2020-10-10T07:49:35+00:00

What is your understanding of what 'mansplaining' is?

From what I understand, it's when a man not an expert in a particular field tries to correct a woman in an area of her expertise, believing his own opinion on the matter to carry more weight than her experience.

Not a woman, so I don't know how prevalent it is, but my wife complains about it sometimes. She teaches business law, and occasionally I'll get a story about some freshman that thinks he knows the course material better than she does (they never do).

AnonPinkLady · 2020-10-10T11:16:50+00:00

Super. I still remember a time when I was studying animation in college and was drawing a digital vehicle design for a class with some friends in a computer lab. I got up to use the bathroom in my sketching phase and came back to some dickwad sitting in my chair talking to my friend saying "see here's what's wrong with this drawing..."

It was a rough sketch for one meaning it was absolutely not ready for anyone to view and criticize and still being refined, the asshat was never invited to even look at it, let alone shit talk it to my male friend, and he had been there prior to me leaving to go to the bathroom. This dickwad on his high fucking horse waiting for the right moment to intrude on a women's unfinished work so he could mansplain to her closest Male friend, rather than her - how could she understand pfft, women right?! It was only HER drawing - and had the ego to act offended when I told him to get the fuck out. Still mad years later and my friend, some friend, acted miffed that I was upset by this.

NotGoingoutofMW · 2020-10-10T14:35:59+00:00

It's not gendered issue. It's always present where a internal knowledgeable expert collides with an external expert. It's just got used when women started to enter the workforce on masse. In general men usually adapt themselves to their environment and deal with it while women tend to cry about the environment and demanding for it to change to fit their own needs.

ElGupo1978 · 2020-10-10T16:18:05+00:00

Men in general like to debate and show off our intellect by arguing of small differences,

Women hate this about men and men don’t understand how annoying it is. When you talk to a woman you must enthusiastically agree with anything she says anything less than full throated support is bad form amongst women.

ItsTheHardCockLife · 2020-10-11T18:16:33+00:00

I ask this because I don’t think I’ve ever experienced it myself. I have definitely been patronized by some men before, but not anymore than the amount of times I’ve been patronized by women.

If it's anything like the "interruption" gap", then females get patronized more than male, but interestingly enough more so by other females than by males.

I've never seen research on how often patronizing occurs, and it's hard to quantify that into numbers whereas interruptions are easy to quantify and there it works like this:

males indeed do interrupt females more than they interrupt other males
however females interrupt other females even more often than they do other males.

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Influence-of-Communication-Partner%E2%80%99s-Gender-on-Hancock-Rubin/f9d437cf7d7a60600b1154c9c448708c0860deff?p2df

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DX8HRdBXkAAXATp.jpg

Life sure is interesting.

upalse · 2020-10-13T08:33:40+00:00

Oh hell yes. While SJWs clearly abuse the term to label opponents who don't actually mansplain, but simply disagree, the phenomena as such is common. Men love to hear themselves talk and are not afraid of being wrong (they'll often just double down). Whereas women are very afraid of being wrong, even in cases where they're overwhelmingly more qualified to speak out.

Roachcluster · 2020-10-13T20:10:36+00:00

Am I to understand that women are somehow less condescending? 😂

stanusNat · 2020-12-28T10:54:29+00:00

Lol this sub is fucking hilarious.

2020-10-09T17:42:25+00:00

No, it’s just being an asshole if your a man and your audience is a woman or women. To attribute a certain act to one gender is sexist.

Title	Does mansplaining really exist?
Author	Thatshygurl
Upvotes	9
Comments	109
Date	October 9, 2020 4:07 PM UTC (5 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/PurplePillDebate
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/PurplePillDebate/comments/j81sa2/does_mansplaining_really_exist/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/PurplePillDebate/does-mansplaining-really-exist.737112 https://theredarchive.com/post/737112

Comments