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In this day and age where most things are normalized, one would think that we are close to breaking free from the harmful stereotypes that restrict men and women every day. Unfortunately, we are still far from it, with gender roles still deeply rooted in our culture and reinforced by role models and the media.
Redditor Much_Description690 was especially interested in the things gals get wrong about guys, further feeding into false judgments that negatively affect them. To know more about them, they started a discussion online asking, “Women of Reddit, what lie did you believe to be true about men that you discovered was false?”
In response, many females shared misconceptions about males they thought were true for a long time but turned out to be a complete myth. Scroll down to find the most eye-opening and wholesome ones, which might change the way you see the masculine gender.
While you're at it, make sure to check out a conversation with Much_Description690, the person who started this discussion in the first place.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
That all men would be against me learning “guy things” like fixing my own vehicles, or working a blue collar job. Turns out, my favorite teachers and biggest cheerleaders in any “guy thing” I want to try are men.
So thank you, to the amazing, kind, supportive, wonderful men who share their knowledge and encourage women to learn important life skills.
EarthGrowl 9 months ago
Way back when trucks had stone wheels, when I first earned my commercial Drivers license. I had to team with another rookie driver for 6 months. A team is in the truck together for 4 to 6 weeks at a time, one sleeping while the other drives. It's very close quarters. There were not a lot of females in the U.S. trucking industry at that time and the trucking companies idea of equality was pairing people randomly. If a woman didn't like being paired with a strange guy, too bad! She was going to be treated the exact same way the company treated men. My co-driver was an older guy from the Southern US. He didn't agree with woman driving trucks. He saw it as a woman taking jobs away from men. It didn't help that I am small enough that I shop for clothes in the children's section. He was not pleased that he was stuck with a tiny female. But! By the time the 6 months were over, he was begging me not the abandon him. I am a walking GPS. Men can learn, they aren't all pigs.
Bored Panda reached out to redditor from Brazil, Much_Description690, who kindly agreed to share the inspiration that encouraged him to start this discussion online.
He told us that the idea came from other posts about the differences and misconceptions about men and women, so he thought he would give it a go as well and learn more about it.
What he wasn't expecting was the interest his question attracted. "I just wanted to add that it's just crazy that a post I was expecting a maximum of 300 upvotes, managed to get 4.1k upvotes, have videos about it, and also a publication in an online magazine."
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#2
"if they're mean to you, it's be cause they really like you."
What a load of b******t. Very damaging thing to say to a young girl also.
If he were in a woman's shoes, he would probably wonder about the male anatomy too, as many of them voiced their misconceptions about it in the comments.
When asked how these false facts about men might affect them, he told us that the ones about their biological nature aren't as harmful, as it's something that can be learned naturally or in classes on the subject. However, comments about men having anger issues, and not knowing how to cook or be organized may be off-putting, especially to women.
He concluded, "Misconceptions affect men and women. Bad people exist, bad men exist, bad women exist, and I think everyone can understand that not all people are the same, I know some people are affected by trauma, but everyone should take their time, and meet people of all genders without preconceptions."
#3
That women talk a lot but men don’t. Like, have you met a man? They just don’t shut up!
Luke Branwen 9 months ago
One of my university classmates could spend HOURS talking about fountain pens. And don't get me started about crypto-bros 😅
After reading several entries (or from just being alive), it’s evident that men are seen in society as being the stronger, self-sufficient, tougher, and overall less emotional gender.
There’s even an existing construct called “Man Box,” which provides a list of behaviors that are traditionally expected from boys and men, like being dominant, resilient, and heterosexual.
In order to adhere to them, the male gender is implicitly and explicitly discouraged from being emotional, vulnerable, or “girly” because such behaviors aren’t in the “Man Box” and therefore are unacceptable. And if you don’t fit in that box, you can’t be a “real” man, which might cause males to struggle to be accepted in society.
#4
Men don't have emotions.
B******t. Men are very emotional creatures. They just aren't 'allowed' to express most of their emotions which leads to health issues, both mental and physical.
Rosie 9 months ago
I think what Luke meant is that women are considered the emotional or sentimental gender, equating that w/out of control or hysterical, even (especially?) when the emotion is anger. Men are trained & expected not to be "soft" so they typically hide their emotions & only anger is allowed as that's a sign of dominance. It's a very f*$# up view, but that's still in most of our cultures, so everyone's detriment.
#5
That *all* men prefer thin women.
False. I've met countless men who have genuinely no attraction to thin women. In fact, plenty of men prefer women who are slightly to moderately larger than average, and some men prefer women who are much, much larger than average. Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder.
Edit: *Thank you* everyone who got the point. To everyone else, y'all are... never mind.🙃
Susie Elle 9 months ago
I grew up believing the same thing. Like, I was 100% convinced of it. Then, after four boyfriends who with the exception of one were all adamant they liked me regardless of being a few pounds heavier or lighter, I've been able to accept that there's more than being thin when it comes to love.
#6
A lot of these answers are simply women registering with shock and surprise when they realize that men too are human beings, often with complicates internal lives.
You can live in this culture indefinitely without being exposed to that idea.
However, a bigger issue we should start addressing is what the future of masculinity looks like, further leading to the question of what kinds of men we want the little boys to become.
As Gary Barker, CEO of Equimundo Center for Masculinities and Social Justice, noted in Forbes, we have already started to rewrite a new world for girls, promising them strength and leadership, but we haven’t done this for boys. As a result, many men are confused about what modern manhood is about, which discourages them from finding this out.
Perhaps we need to stop seeing gender roles as a threat and instead focus on what is working and what no longer is. Some stereotypes can hold both men and women back and impact their mental health. The American Psychological Association has found that men who conform to the ideals of traditional masculinity are more likely to suffer from cardiovascular diseases, engage in heavy drinking, and even commit suicide.
#7
They don’t need foreplay. They absolutely do, they aren’t boner machines. They’re only human.
#8
That if a guy broke up with a girl he was “just scared of his feelings”. I swear chicks told each other this all the time. Like no girl he’s just not into you😂
#9
I know this may sound dumb but I didn’t think men could feel insecure. Every guy I know has an insane amount of confidence, I’ve never seen any male figures in my life show anything close to insecurity. I guess they’re just really good at masking it.
Tobias Reaper 9 months ago
we just tend to hide because its not socially acceptable or we learned that nobody cares
Barker added, “Most boys and men are aching not for things to stay the same, but for a new script. A script that includes being emotionally connected; being equal caregivers; supporting full equality in the workplace; supporting full equality for individuals of all sexual orientations and gender identities, and being able to ask for help when they need it.”
In reality, this is not a man’s or a woman’s issue; it’s everyone's, as equality benefits us all. It helps us to thrive, and it’s our responsibility to start that change and free our society from harmful stereotypes.
#10
For a long time I was given the impression that a majority of men viewed sex as a degrading act upon a woman, even if they were the ones having sex with that woman - rather than seeing it as an act of intimacy or an expression of love. Turns out an *extremely vocal* minority like to paint it that way while claiming that all other men feel the same.
Luke Branwen 9 months ago
Vocal minorities convinced they're the majority is a curse of today's society.
#11
Men don't like flowers. They often do but have never had a need to develop preferences towards them.
Luke Branwen 9 months ago
My mom has tons of orchids and I love them. My personal favorite is probably amaryllis.
#12
My wife was surprised that men could be organized when she moved in with me and my place was very tidy.
#13
I thought women were dramatic. Turns out men are so f*****g dramatic for no reason??
#14
That men fundamentally don’t care about romance and only desire sex in their relationships with women. Super cynical, pretty misandrist take but being on social media a decent amount of the day and seeing degrading posts or comments about women from some of the guys on there definitely makes you believe men just hate women.
But no, my boyfriend (recent development) is so f*****g awesome. He’s such a hopeless romantic like me and I am so lucky to have such a lovable idiot in my life 💖💖
Tobias Reaper 9 months ago
i love a bit of romance the feeling i get when i do something romantic for my partner or she does something for me
#15
I grew up in a household where men didn't find things cute. Was very suprised in high school when guy friends would say things were cute and actually mean it not sarcastically. Still think about men finding things cute to this day 😅
Luke Branwen 9 months ago
The world is full of cute things and we'd be fools if we didn't appreciate them.
#16
That there's a sure fire way of pleasing a man, in every regard. Some sort of formula a woman must follow to be liked by men. It shouldn't be surprising to realize men are individual people, with their own likes and dislikes. Sure some things please more men, and some things bother many, but no 2 men are the same. Shocking!
#18
My dad has the knack. Something not right about your house/car/computer/ appliance/dog? You don't have to explain, he's already fixed it. I genuinely thought this was inherent to men, because my dad makes everything look so easy.
Jrog 9 months ago
Nothing related to being a man or a dad, and "the knack" does not exist. It's just a mix of being fairly smart to understand quickly how stuff works, having some experience to identify the typical means of assembly/disassembly/workings, and having the right tools/equipment on hand. Lacking any of the three makes everything incredibly harder; For the latter it's just money, for the second it's just practice, for the first, well, there is little recourse.
#19
That women can't be platonic friends with men or that men will always develop romantic feelings. most of my friends are men and i've literally never had that issue
#20
My wife was really blown away when I knew how to cook. Matter of fact I do all our cooking, she never has to do anything other than occasionally air fry some chicken nuggets or a corn dog for our daughter.
I’ve realized as I’ve gotten older, most guys I know don’t cook. Which blows my mind.
Kesam 9 months ago (edited)
It's strange how your personal experience sometimes doesn't match reality in the rest of the world at all. All boys I grew up with knew how to cook. It was just completely normal. Not just in my family but all of my friends as well. It was mind-blowing to me when I found out that wasn't the norm elsewhere.
#21
That if a guy was raised by a single mom automatically becomes compassionate and soft hearted person especially towards woman so not true .
#22
The amount of women I've read on Reddit that believe if a man gets a boner it means he's sexually aroused is astonishing.
Tobias Reaper 9 months ago
it has a life of its own just happens sometimes no reason or logic to it
#23
I was always told that to defend myself from a guy to hit his nuts. Hubby informed me (veteran army mp) that while it will hurt a guy, only a percentage will drop. It's just as likely to p**s him off and make him want to attack you worse. There are better places to attack for a smaller person like me.
#24
Not me but a coworker of mine was raised to believe that men shouldn’t show emotions. She wouldn’t let her son to cry as a child or teenager and said she basically bullied him into manning up. She moved away from where she grew up and realized how f****d up that was. She said she really regrets treating him like that
#25
As a trans woman, I always assumed all guys wanted to be girls. Turns out it was just me
Flamingo Croquet 9 months ago
This is actually very sweet. ☺️Happy she found out and found herself ♥️
#26
Concerning how many of these comments consist of women thinking these absolutely f*****g bonkers things about men, and only turning around because the guy they started dating, turned out to be a regular human
clairebear 9 months ago
The internet is to blame. It is a catalogue of lies, prejudices, bigotry, tired tropes, extremes, and cliches. The media and content creators are only interested in extreme, upsetting, weird, selfish, cruel, abusive behaviours, dramas, and catastrophes as this is what generates clicks. Nice stuff, reality, and the truth get lost in the noise.
#27
I grew up thinking all men around me and in my life will be evil and only want to hurt me. It messed up my view on the opposite gender so much I could barely stand alone in a room with a man without a panic attack, I’m now in love with a wonderful boy who who wouldn’t hurt a bug<3
#29
I grew up believing that men weren’t capable of love. Like I actually thought all men who were in a relationship could not possibly love the person they were with.
I met my husband in high school and he completely changed that belief! He showed so much love for me and was able to express that love in such a wholesome way that truly made me realize that I was so wrong.
#30
“ the bigger the better “
What do you think ?
MaximumKarmaSaint 9 months ago
I found out today just how many weird perceptions women might have of me.
Gavin Johnson 9 months ago
Y’know the ‘you can be anything you want to be’ mantra that we encourage girls to follow? Yeah, that’s all about not closing down stuff ‘cause it’s perceived as being ‘a boy thing’ when in reality girls can and will do anything they put their minds to. Well that works the other way, boys are told ‘they don’t cry’, ‘they are strong’, ‘they shouldn’t like xxxxxxx’ because it’s considered girly or feminine. We need to normalise the fact that we are all emotional beings to a greater or lesser extent and that sex is not the deciding factor in that nor does it decide what we can and can’t do. Love from a bloke who loves flowers, animals, children and being cuddled.
Captain McSmoot 9 months ago
How in the world did BoredPanda allow for a non-man bashing thing to be posted?! Is the tide turning or did enough people go on vacation that this one slipped through?
TheBlueBitterfly 9 months ago
Must've slipped past. I thought the norm now was "all men are creeps, any man who opens his mouth is mansplaining, all men cheat, any single man with an opinion is a republican maga incel" etc etc.. 🤢 It's nice to see some positivity for once!
Load More Replies...
Hey! 9 months ago
I was about 9 y.o. when I discovered that guys also pooped. I did not know before that. We always had multiple washrooms/powder rooms so the probability of me following one of my brothers after he went was minimal. I went in right after my brother did his business and I thought I'd die and just needed something in the pharmacy. He was shocked when I questioned him about it. Well, I thought it was part of being saddled with periods in the future. Not sure why. Not from my parents or siblings.
Steve Hall 9 months ago
These are people who have discovered that the feminist definition of men is not totally correct.
MaximumKarmaSaint 9 months ago
I found out today just how many weird perceptions women might have of me.
Gavin Johnson 9 months ago
Y’know the ‘you can be anything you want to be’ mantra that we encourage girls to follow? Yeah, that’s all about not closing down stuff ‘cause it’s perceived as being ‘a boy thing’ when in reality girls can and will do anything they put their minds to. Well that works the other way, boys are told ‘they don’t cry’, ‘they are strong’, ‘they shouldn’t like xxxxxxx’ because it’s considered girly or feminine. We need to normalise the fact that we are all emotional beings to a greater or lesser extent and that sex is not the deciding factor in that nor does it decide what we can and can’t do. Love from a bloke who loves flowers, animals, children and being cuddled.
Captain McSmoot 9 months ago
How in the world did BoredPanda allow for a non-man bashing thing to be posted?! Is the tide turning or did enough people go on vacation that this one slipped through?
TheBlueBitterfly 9 months ago
Must've slipped past. I thought the norm now was "all men are creeps, any man who opens his mouth is mansplaining, all men cheat, any single man with an opinion is a republican maga incel" etc etc.. 🤢 It's nice to see some positivity for once!
Load More Replies... Hey! 9 months ago
I was about 9 y.o. when I discovered that guys also pooped. I did not know before that. We always had multiple washrooms/powder rooms so the probability of me following one of my brothers after he went was minimal. I went in right after my brother did his business and I thought I'd die and just needed something in the pharmacy. He was shocked when I questioned him about it. Well, I thought it was part of being saddled with periods in the future. Not sure why. Not from my parents or siblings.
Steve Hall 9 months ago
These are people who have discovered that the feminist definition of men is not totally correct.
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