Women are allowed to be angry, but only if they are mothers December 26, 2018 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 12,425 |
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The historian Rebecca Traister says ‘mama-bear anger’ is the only form of female rage allowed by society.
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There is one exception: maternal rage – or, to give it its full, saccharine name, “mama-bear anger” – is not merely acceptable, but regarded with admiration, even awe. This is at its most pronounced when social conservatives talk about motherly fury in the animal kingdom: “Come between her and her young and that sweet-looking wombat/panda/seemingly harmless animal will hoof you in the head until you are dead.” It is biological determinism with a purpose (isn’t it always?): so long as the rage is rooted in altruism, it poses no challenge to the feminine ideal of someone who always puts herself last. The reverse-engineered lesson for a woman is that anger, while it may technically come from within, is actually generated by the biological externality of a baby, a bit like breast milk. It is not innate. It is just a magical thing she can do for the good of the tribe.
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Wanderingone
Unless the child is adopted, it should be viewed as a badge of narcissism. Although there are undoubtedly other factors involved, part of the reason the anger of mothers may be more socially acceptable is due to the veneer of personal importance that comes with the authority of being a mother.
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