Just a Thought with Tom Gentry
Just a Thought
How Patriarchy Undermines Masculinity
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This episode features a passage from How Patriarchy Undermines Masculinity, by Tom Gentry. It was published January 20, 2023, on Substack.

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It sounds counterintuitive – the idea that patriarchy undermines masculinity. But, it’s true. Because, all of us as human beings, as we live day by day, invariably know, deep in our hearts, whether a thing is right or wrong, true or false.

The unearned privilege that comes with patriarchy is corrosive. It’s already done far more damage to men and masculinity than feminist ideas ever will. When power is given to a man whether he deserves it or not, it emasculates him. It deprives him of the opportunity to prove himself. It breeds insecurity. He walks through life fearing he’s an impostor. Then the insecure man feels the need to compensate by bullying someone, pounding his chest, bedding as many women as he can, slapping his wife around, insulting strangers on the Internet.

When a man is given an advantage that he hasn’t earned or doesn’t deserve, he knows it. She’s the better candidate, but he gets the job because he’s a man. Both people are cheated in this scenario. She is deprived of the opportunity she earned. He is deprived of the opportunity to face the reality that he isn’t good enough. That might motivate him to be better. Giving him something he didn’t earn makes for a man who feels confused and inadequate. Emasculated.

So, to all of you who say masculinity is being destroyed by wokeism, or liberalism, or feminism, that manhood is under attack. Bullshit. You can go on saying they want to destroy life as we know it, and they hate marriage, and they hate men.

Just a thought. Maybe we need a better, more masculine version of manhood. That version of manhood, where men are more empowered, where men have the ability to really, truly prove themselves, it can only exist when men no longer have a head start in every race. And, when we stop associating emotions with gender. 

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© Copyright 2023, Tom Gentry; Music: Worky Worky by Andy G. Cohen, edited for use. Used with permission from the artist under a Creative Commons license.