I love this particular meme/cartoon. It's funny, and true, and insightful, although perhaps a bit cruel, which makes it a perfect meme.

But it's worth reflecting upon a bit as well. https://twitter.com/MorlockP/status/1198057185273667586

As Morlock and his followers well know, the hypothetical woman here is just following the incentives provided by society. For that matter, so is the man.

Men are valued for what they have.
Women are valued for what they are.

This is, I believe, the essence of what feminists refer to as The Patriarchy.

And for all I roll my eyes whenever someone uses that word, it is nevertheless real.

I'm not a feminist. I'm an individualist.

My take on the situation is that you need not conform to the gender roles that society offers you. And to the extent that that's what feminism is ("the notion that women are people") well then I'm a feminist.

Some strands of feminist thought (and there are lots of them) however go further, and say that you MUST not conform to the gender roles that society offers you.

And to the extent that THAT is what feminism is, well, thank you ma'am, but in that case I'm NOT a feminist.

I don't think there's anything wrong with gender roles, nor with expecting them, nor with rejecting them.

I do think there's something wrong with demanding them, and also something wrong with denying them.

As for the cartoon - you can (and I do) look at it as a wry, humorous look at one of those odd facts of life. And it is a fact of life, and not necessarily a bad one. But at the same time, one can look at it as making light not of life, but of women.

I don't think that's kind.

If you see it as a critique of women, you're basically laughing at them for complying with societal demands. You're assigning them a role and then condemning them for fulfilling it.

This is the cruel side of The Patriarchy. Small wonder so many women bridle against it.

If you value gender roles - and there are many reasons to do so - then you should treasure and celebrate people as they enact them (on both sides!), while perhaps laughing at the odd situations they lead to, a tradition as old as art itself.

And if you value people and a harmonious society, then you should practice tolerance and restraint, leaving room for those who want to go beyond their assigned roles, or explore their boundaries, or enact them in their own way.

There may be two genders, but there are eight billion people. Be cautious before speaking on behalf of all of them.

/f