Chauvinism

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Chauvinism is extreme and unreasoning partisanship on behalf of a group to which one belongs, especially when the partisanship includes malice and hatred towards a rival group. Jingoism is a similar term of British derivation. A frequent contemporary use of the term in English is male chauvinism, which refers to the belief that males are superior to females. A similar concept discussed by a few misandry researchers is female chauvinism, or the belief that females are superior to males.

Contents 1 Etymology 2 Chauvinism as nationalism 3 Male chauvinism 4 Female chauvinism 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Etymology

The term is derived from the undocumented Nicolas Chauvin, whose legend made him out to be a soldier under Napoleon Bonaparte whose fanatical zeal for his Emperor induced him, though wounded seventeen times in the Napoleonic Wars, to continue nevertheless to fight for France. It is claimed he yelled in the Battle of Waterloo when the French were finally defeated: "The Old Guard dies but does not surrender!", implying blind and unquestioned zeal to one's country [or other group of reference].

The origin and early usage indicate that chauvinisme was coined to describe excessive nationalism, and the original French term retains this meaning today. The term entered public use due to a satirical treatment of Chauvin in the French play La Cocarde Tricolore (The Tricolore Cockade).

[edit] Chauvinism as nationalism

In "Imperialism, Nationalism, Chauvinism", in The Review of Politics 7.4, (October 1945), p. 457, Hannah Arendt describes the concept:

Chauvinism is an almost natural product of the national concept insofar as it springs directly from the old idea of the "national mission." ... (A) nation's mission might be interpreted precisely as bringing its light to other, less fortunate peoples that, for whatever reason, have miraculously been left by history without a national mission. As long as this concept did not develop into the ideology of chauvinism and remained in the rather vague realm of national or even nationalistic pride, it frequently resulted in a high sense of responsibility for the welfare of backward peoples.

(See, for example, white man's burden.)

The word does not require a judgment that the chauvinist is right or wrong in his opinion, only that he is blind and unreasoning in coming to it, ignoring any facts which might temper his fervor. In modern use, however, it is often used pejoratively to imply that the chauvinist is both unreasoning and wrong.

[edit] Male chauvinism

Male chauvinism is a term used to describe the belief that males are superior to females. The word "chauvinist" was originally used to describe one who has a fanatical loyalty in one's country. The word was later applied by the "women's liberation movement" in the 1960s and used to describe men who believe women are inferior, speak to them as inferiors, or treat them negatively based solely upon their gender. The slur "chauvinist pig" has been reclaimed by some men as a jocular personal rebuttal or tolerance of such accusations.

[edit] Female chauvinism

Female chauvinism can refer to two things. It can be the belief that females are superior to males. It can also refer to women who replicate male chauvinism and sexist stereotypes.

According to misandry researchers Nathanson and Young, modern feminist theory has chauvinistic elements. Nathanson and Young claim that some feminists assert that women are innately different from men and superior to men and that knowledge created by women is superior to that created by men.^[1]

So called "women's ways of knowing" which are said to rely on subjective intuition and emotional connection are considered superior to so-called "men's ways of knowing" which are said to be based upon objective evidence and reasonable contemplation.^[2] Nathan and Young say, "in one way or another, feminist espistemologies are radically subjective. They refer to 'women's ways of knowing' as distinct and opposed to those of men."^{[citation needed]}

Wendy McElroy claims that in some "gender feminist" views, all men are considered un-reformable rapists, wife-beating brutes and useless as partners or fathers to women^[3]. McElroy and other authors such as Camille Paglia claim that gender feminists view women as innocent victims who never make irresponsible or morally questionable choices^[4]. Other feminists such as Kate Fillion have started questioning the idea that women are always innocent victims of relationship problems and men always the guilty victimizers^[5].

Ariel Levy uses the term in another sense in the title of her book, "Female Chauvinist Pigs." She claims that many young women in the United States are replicating male chauvinism and sexist stereotypes about women in their embrace of "raunch culture" and traditionally masculine attributes^[6].

[edit] See also

• Han chauvinism
• Internationalism (politics)
• Jingoism
• Misogyny
• Misandry
• Mosley
• One gets used to anything, except a guy
• Racism
• Sexism
• Testosterone poisoning
• Women and children

[edit] References

1. ^ Paul Nathanson and Katherine K. Young, Legalizing Misandry: From Public Shame to Systemic Discrimination against Men p.^{[citation needed]}
2. ^ Daphne Patia and Noretta Koerge, Professing Feminism: Scholarship and Indoctrination in Women's Studies p.^{[citation needed]}
3. ^ Wendy McElroy, Sexual Correctness: The Gender-Feminist Attack on Women p.^{[citation needed]}
4. ^ Guests: Camille Paglia & Christina Hoff Sommers Has Feminism Gone Too Far? Think Tank™ With Ben Wattenberg - aired: 4 Nov 1994 accessed 6 Jan 2006
5. ^ Kate Fillion, Lip Service: The Truth About Women's Darker Side in Love, Sex and Friendship
6. ^ Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture, Ariel Levy, 2006, ISBN 0743284283

[edit] External links

Female Chauvinism

• Explanation of Female Chauvinism
• The Evolution of an Antifeminist