How
many times have one come across the word “MCP”, as in Male Chauvinist Pig? Have
you wondered about the female psychology that drives them to use such a
derogatory adjective? You would be keen to know that it’s not the action which
elicits such a remark, but the way it is presented that provokes such a
reaction.
Take
an instance where you are with some friends on a railway station and you offer
to carry your lady friend’s luggage. Now that’s a chivalrous gesture. Not if
you try explaining that she’s a female and does not seem to have the strength
to carry that weight. After that you are an incorrigible chauvinist. There’s a
thin line that separates chauvinism and chivalry.
Suppose
that you are sitting in a canteen and one of your female friends approach
carrying a plate. If you pull a chair for her then you will be regarded as
chivalrous. However, if you make loud your rationale that she was carrying a
plate and a girl does not have enough muscle to pull a chair with one hand then
you are a chauvinist!
The action
being the same, the outcome can make a hero or villain depending on how one
plays it. If you are smart you have chivalry. Or else you are just a staid male
chauvinist.
Generally, an
average female body is more supple and malleable than the male counterpart. If
a guy says that this flexibility makes them a diva, in comparison to men, in
finer forms of art like dancing, then he will be striped with knighthood. Any
bold admission about the dexterity this gives the female species in reaching
out deep lying dust under the far corner of sofa will be looked upon with
scepticism. However, claiming that this makes women the undisputed and
legitimate master of household chores will certainly open your way to
perdition.
So
next time you hitch a hike from the opposite gender, leave her to think that
its your chivalry that has led you to make her the pillion rider. It would be a
folly to reveal the apprehension about her strength to balance your weight,
which has compelled you to take the reins in your own hands. You can further
imperil your reputation by attributing your occupancy of rider’s seat to poor
driving skills entrenched in her gender. After that you will be officially
crowned as an MCP.
So,
in essence, chivalry and chauvinism are just two sides of the same coin. Which
side you put on display will determine what character you want to portray.
