Text: Stanciu Diana

Illustration: Alina Dima

       I tend to think that at least once in our lives, every one of us has heard about "nervous feminists" who want to rule the whole world and oppress men. Eh, I was joking about ruling the world. Now, speaking on a more serious note, it is clear that this stereotype is widespread worldwide.

       However, each stereotype has its roots in the historical image of femininity, one in which women were supposed to be gentle, caring and modest (which, let's be honest, we still encounter today). These submissive and passive behaviors were valued by society as a standard of true femininity - being a "lady".

       Feminists, who fight for the abolition of this image, unfortunately face precisely the pressure to conform to this image.

       However, the "edgy feminist" is an archetype, portrayed from the start in an unfavorable light, and often assumed to be man-hating, single, or without a male, cis, and heterosexual partner. These characteristics of the "edgy feminist" are in antithesis to the previously illustrated traits associated with the traditional image of femininity, such as being motherly, caring and nice.

       Of course, this stereotype of the "edgy feminist" stems from a whole host of misconceptions about feminism and feminists, preconceptions spread by anti-feminists, such as:

•     "Feminists are ugly."
•     "Feminists are masculine." (note that being male is not a negative attribute)
•     "Feminists are nervous."
•     "Feminists neglect their natural role as mothers/don't take care of their children."
•     "Feminists want to emasculate men."
•     "They are mean to their husbands, if they can even marry."
•     "They don't want to be equal to men, they want to dominate them."

But if you ever hear one of these phrases, it's ideal to keep in mind that these ideas were launched by anti-feminists, who tried to convince us of their validity as early as 200 years ago.

Sources:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10130950.2020.1798791

https://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2015/12/28/where-do-negative-stereotypes-about-feminists-come-from/