Wow its been a while I since I last posted here. With N bowing out I need to make sure April doesn't get discouraged. Here goes.
Okay in kind of in tune with my last post I want to talk about gender and violence but this time instead of rape I want to talk about genitals (as the title says).
I'm going to go straight to the point.
Why is it socially acceptable for a female* to hit a male* in the genitals regardless of the circumstances?
Now I want to start from the get go by saying that I'm not talking about the actual justifiable instances such as fending off an attacker.
I'm talking about how like in the Beverly Hillbillies movie when Ellie Mae Clampett in that wrestling match blatantly hit her opponent in the testicles. I've yet to hear of any high school wrestling association where intentional hits to the genitals were allowed.
I'm talking about all those movies and media where when a female is simply pissed off at a guy she responds by kicking him in the testicles. If he says something she doesn't like kick him in the testicles. If he does something that she doesn't like (but not including physical contact with her person) kick him in the testicles. If she does something as innocent as swing a bag the wrong way and hits him in the testicles she seems to be split between laughing and being concerned for him.
Now some will say that its acceptable because the violence that females commit against males is not taken seriously because of the belief that a female really can't hurt a male but I think there is more to it than that.
The reason I say there is more to it than that is because when a female attacks a male in this manner its often not simply just written off as not serious but said female is actively encouraged and praised for attacking in such a painful manner even when its not called for. (And allow me to assure you. As a person who carries a pair of testicles getting hit in them HURTS A LOT.) Like when Ellie Mae stomped on her opponents testicles during that match all you hear from the crowd is the "oooooo!" and then praise for her winning the match, despite using very dirty moves.
Now given how she performed in that match I think it was pretty clear that she was on par with him. So why is such an attacked allowed to go unquestioned?
Maybe it has something to do with being a "real man" (as The System says that those who carry testicles must be men but that's another story for another day) meaning not responding to pain so therefore if a male doubles over after such a hit its a sign of his weakness aka proof that he is not a man and thus the greenlight to ridicule him lights up. Ergo when Ellie Mae won that match, even with illegal moves, it was still passed off as a humiliation on his part.
Moving on from Ellie Mae look at how a hit to the testicles is often used as a comic device. Need a quick laugh? Hit someone below the belt. And beyond the whole thing about how females can't really hurt males this seems to be a way for a quick random laugh whether its done by a female, male, animal, or inanimate object (extra points if said male does something that causes a chain reaction that ends with a hit to their own genitals).
Are you by chance familiar with America's Funniest Home Videos? It was (or is I'm not sure if its still running) a weekly tv show in which people sent in funny clips in hopes of winning a $25,000 cash prize. You would not believe how many "guy gets hit in the nuts" videos aired on that show during the years. Whether by men, women, children, pets, or fault of their own can you really imagine videos of females getting hit in the genitals being up for cash prizes on prime time television?
So I suppose the question should be:
Why is it that a male* getting hit in the genitals is not just socially acceptable but seen as funny and is encouraged and praised, regardless of the circumstance?
Just wondering.
* - I'm using male and female here instead of boy/man and girl/woman because I'm breaking this down by genitals we carry, not by the presentation that we go by. And for the most part those who carry testicles, those who are made fun of for getting hit there, are male
