There is no way to easily disprove a belief. Many people believe that maleness/masculinity is an intrinsic quality strictly separated from a solidly defined feminine counterpart. I think that’s fine — not everyone has to be or believe the same thing. But neither can argument “disprove” the opposing belief that masculinity and femininity are largely constructed, that most people’s behavior and psychology operates across a dynamic range of gendered territory, and that the association between people and gender is for the most part quite arbitrary. The reason people on this thread seem so easily offended is, in my opinion, because they are being told “you cannot be what you think you are; it’s impossible.
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| — | Kevin Nielson in response to article: What Men Say About Women When They Think You’ve Never Been One via the Bilerico Project |
