Deconstructing Social Gender Constructs.....

*Or, as was pointed out to me, I was just being oversensitive due to issues that are entirely unrelated to the thread mentioned below. Not the time-out needed part - the anti-feminist accusations I was reading into some of the comments, that do not in fact exist. Because I do believe in owning my stupidity, I am not going to remove that bit. The rest of the post is valid and topical to ongoing discussions.

See the inspiration for this post here - be warned, this link is to scientists and other very bright people acting like bloody obnoxious little children who need a time-out. Included in the attached thread are people who are attacking the totally hot Dr. Isis, for actually being a shoe-loving domestic and laboratory goddess. This is, supposedly, anti-feminist

Give me a break.

See this post (if you haven't) and come back - this current discussion will still be here.

We are who we are and there is nothing wrong with that. It is not in any way counterintuitive to actually fall into certain archetypal social gender stereotypes, while trying at the same time, to deconstruct those stereotypes as actual social gender constructs. Indeed, what is counterintuitive is denying ourselves and who we are, in the name of said deconstructions. Who the hell is going to want to actually accept such deconstructions if it means pretending to be something or someone we're not?

Deconstructing archetypal social gender constructs is all about the meaning we put into who we are and what we do. My love for hunting, power tools and such doesn't define my gender, any more than my love of skirts and tendency to be very sensitive to feelings, mine and others, defines my gender. Deconstructing social gender constructs does not mean we need to defy those constructs, it means we need to deny their ability to define gender. It really is that simple.