It’s a common stereotype in society (and bad movies) that women are needy, clingy and yearning for a sense of security, while men are independent, self-assured and emotionally distant. But could this cliché be spinning on its pigeonholed head?
A recent book says yes. It seems the rise of the superwomen has had a profound influence on men – making them needier and causing them to yearn more loudly for comfort, reassurance and direction from women.
Writer Hanna Rosin's new book,
The End of Men: And the Rise of Women, explores the fact that men have been the dominant sex since the dawn of humanity, yet this is no longer the case. And this new state of affairs is radically shifting the power dynamics between men and women, according to Rosin.
The sisterhood has made great strides in recent years – we have a female Prime Minister, a female Governor General and women now make up half the Australian work force. We’re even slowly taking up seats on boards across a range of companies, all in the name of equality.
But Rosin questions whether equality is really the end point and argues that women are simply better at adapting to this modern, post-industrial society, and men are being left in the dust.
Men are falling behind academically and professionally because they are less “flexible” than women, less capable of adapting rapidly to an economy that's increasingly “indifferent to brawn”, she writes.
The result? A growing number of men are now expecting women to serve as perpetually available emotional beacons in their struggle to keep up.
So despite the fact women can now do anything, get out the tissues ladies because while we’re changing rapidly to keep up with the new world, it seems we’ll never quite shake that traditionally feminine role of sympathetic listener.
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