for man in his innermost soul is merely evil; woman, however, is mean.

A better translation of this part would be maybe the precisely opposite! Something like "Man in his essence is merely evil-toward/evil-ward; woman, however, is evil".

I think the point is something like Shakespeare's 'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'. In the sense that a man will still remain human, even at his worst, but a woman might damn the whole universe if it were up to her.

That ultimately probably goes back to ancient Greek traditions that saw woman as incapable of controlling her emotions. It's interesting cos actually in some of the research from my first sex differences articles, it seems that it's men who are incapable of controlling their emotions, whereas women are less extreme and far more practical, worldly creatures!

Anyway, I'm not supporting any view, but as the Shakespeare quote shows, you'd probably have to refrain from reading almost any literature if you stop reading misogynistic literature! I detect many man-hating comments and views in women's lit too. I think it's just in the nature of being human that we don't self-reflect as much as we blame. I think both men and women see the other sex as largely a sex object that's meant to satisfy them (not just in sex, but all areas). Which is why it's important to try and understand each other (see my broad definition of feminism below).

I don't call myself a feminist because I am not very sure what it means anymore. People have misused and abused the word for so long that I find it to be just a hollow label now.

I do call myself a feminist, cos I think all things considered it serves us best to promote the label rather than go back perhaps to a time when it was vilified. But I do agree we're in a moment right now where each interest group tries to take over the word for themselves. I think mostly cos the most vocal and extreme always get the limelight.

To me, at the broadest, being a feminist simply means that you believe that gender issues are worth talking and thinking about.

It is funny that I have been given the same advice regarding men. And I have had the same experience with men you had with women :D Lol. Some men love to be whipped, others love to whip. However, I am pretty sure that there are many men and women out there who exclude whipping from their repertoire :D

I'm no longer sure whether we're talking about metaphorical or literal whipping :D

But I see what you mean, women who "rule their house with an iron fist" (to quote from Nick Cave's Jack the ripper song) are quite successful in their marriages!

Discord eats away time like a black hole!

I know we need to put this thread to rest, but it's hard for me not to reply 😅 Did you know men are proven to talk more than women?!