August 30, 2012
Is Chivalry Dead?
Are men chivalrous anymore? 

The answer is largely "no."  The reason: women's behavior.

"Chivalry is a quaint word dating back to the days of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, referring to gentlemanly behavior towards women.  We think of Sir Walter Raleigh gallantly spreading his cape down on a street so Queen Elizabeth of England could walk across a puddle without getting her feet caked in mud. Over the centuries it manifested itself in such common courtesy as opening the door and letting a woman enter before you, pulling the chair out so the man's date could sit down, or helping a woman take off her coat.

It's hard to believe now, but in the early 1960s John and Jackie Kennedy era, chivalry was a huge part of our culture, along with men wearing suits and hats to baseball games and women wearing gloves, hats and mink stoles. Then the whirlwind of women's liberation swept over the land the next three decades."

Now first off, I want to make it perfectly clear that I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with women having equal opportunities.  If they have the ability, then the opportunity should not be closed to them.  That goes for everything - gender, race...whatever.  If you have the ability, you should not be denied the opportunity.  That's basic civil rights, and I am very big on that.   All I'm saying is that women shouldn't automatically have the opportunity just because they are females.  For example, if a certain number of push-ups is required for a particular job, then the number of push-ups that male and female applicants have to complete should be the same.  If a woman can't do what a man can do physically, then she can't be a firefighter.  You can't have quotas for things just because it seems fair.  We promise equal opportunity in our country, not equal outcome.  I mean it's silly - should you really be allowed to get a job just because you want it?! 
 
And it's this feminist attitude that has made respect and admiration between men and women take a nosedive.  Women's studies programs teach women that when men act graciously, they are attempting to control them and keep them down.  They encourage women to be hostile, become major ball-busters, and think they can have babies without men because kids don't need a daddy.  If you listen to them, they say just about every woman is beaten, raped, and cheated out of everything (just read Who Stole Feminism by Christina Hoff Sommers if you think I'm nuts).  And when these women dress like pigs, talk like pigs, and act like pigs, it is a little demoralizing for men to put them on a pedestal, take them out on dates, and treat them like they're special.  Think about it.  Chivalry has to do with respect, and we don't see women behaving with much dignity when they hook up and have multiple sexual partners.
   
Although chivalry is dead, there are still nice guys out there who would act chivalrously, but they simply don't know what the hell women want.  Today's men are very frustrated and scared because they accept women's equality, but they are afraid that if they act romantically, they will come across as sexist and offensive.  I don't blame them.  I mean it's just the stupidest stuff that makes women angry with men.   

For example, when I was just starting to date boys, my dad was very clear with me: "If a fellow opens his car door, then go out on the date with him.  If he doesn't open the car door, turn around and come back inside the house.  Don't have a conversation about it, don't argue, and don't demand anything.  Just say thank you very much and wave goodbye."  However, if a guy tries to open a door for a woman today, she tells him, "No, I can open it myself." 

All I can say is if you're a guy and a woman behaves obnoxiously like that on a date, just let her open the door herself.  In fact leave her there.  Tell her she can call a cab herself too because she's equally competent to do that.  If a woman acts in an ungracious way, dump her.  Don't waste your time, money, and effort on her.  If you go out of your way to be chivalrous, kind, and thoughtful, and she doesn't behave in a way that shows she respects, admires, and appreciates it, she's not a woman - she's just a female. 

It makes a man feel good to be protecting and taking care of a woman, and it should make a woman feel good to know that a man is being respectful and thoughtful of her.  If I walk into an elevator and a man lets me walk in first, I turn around and say, "Thank you very much."  Most of the time they look utterly surprised to get the compliment. 

We've lost something beautiful and it's something so essential in a love relationship.  If you treat your husband like he's a man, you'll get more manly behavior.  If you treat your wife like she's a woman, you will get more womanly behavior.  The polarity between men and women actually means something despite what social trends say.  I don't care how big of a feminist you are - we are still hardwired. 

Women should expect men to provide, protect, nurture, and love them.  If they don't want to allow that, they are going to miss out on a lot.





Posted by Staff at 7:00 AM