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Essay on What I'Ve Learned from Men

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Have you as a woman ever noticed that it is almost realistically impossible for us to get along with men? It seems like no matter how hard we try or how hard we try to pretend we understand them, we always seem to come off as stupid and sometimes crazy to them. I believe most women view some men as unclassy, selfish human beings who lack the ability to give respect or acknowledge the fact that women are not there to take care of them. In some ways, men are sometimes seen as the term that women use often: animals. However, that would be an immoral judgment. In Barbara Ehrenreich's short essay, "What I've learned from Men," she describes and bases her essay on things women can learn from men. In this essay, she proves that men …show more content…

(In the above example, I was so busy taking responsibility for preserving the veneer of "niceness" that I almost forgot to take responsibility for myself)" (Ehrenreich 196). In this quote, it proves that no matter how bad a person's attitude or manners are, women still treat them with respect. This is one thing a woman might argue about with a man: getting the respect back. From personal experiences, my x-step-dad was very much like this at times when he and my mother would argue. He was a selfish pig who thought he did everything for everybody but did absolutely nothing. I saw him as a "typical man" and what I call an animal, and also one who would be a perfect example for this essay.
"Finally, we may be able to learn something from men about what to do with anger. As a general rule, women get irritated: men get mad. We make tight little smiles of ladylike exasperation; they pound on desks and roar" (Ehrenreich 198). This quote brings up another comparison between men and women and their anger issues. This is a favorite quote of mine in the essay and I agree with it one hundred percent because I have witnessed it as well as experienced it. Ehrenreich continues to give advice on this subject and suggests how to act and position yourself around a man when he is discussing or even arguing with you on a certain issue. She tells women to ignore the ladylike attributes that they were taught, and boldly stand up for yourself and/or walk away.

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