In the broadest sense, the fallacious discipline of physiognomy could refer to any attempt to discern someone's moral character or personality traits from his or her physical features. In the most focused sense, physiognomy refers to the notion that facial characteristics can indicate the personality or moral characteristics of a given individual. It may have declined in popularity, but it is not as if many people do not cling to any similar ideas.
The new "physiognomy," though it is new only in the sense that it survives even after the general rejection of tradition physiognomy--entails assumptions based upon gender, not assumptions based upon nose size or other facial features. This erroneous ideology has never been consistently relinquished by human societies, although few people would presently be stupid enough to suppose a connection between facial appearance and personality characteristics.
Unsurprisingly, numerous people who are intelligent enough to reject the historical forms of physiognomy are often unintelligent enough to truly believe that one's genitalia or chromosomes dictates one's aspirations, moral character, competencies, and personality traits. Those whose actual psychological traits align with gender stereotypes might even enjoy the fact that various cultural biases favor them. More importantly, these biases might be compatible with their erroneous worldviews.
Without non-physical distinctions between men and women, there can be no basis for any segregation of the genders or for numerous other sexist traditions. Many proponents of the new "physiognomy"--almost always conservatives without fail--support it because they selectively want to preserve certain forms of sexism that are deeply intertwined with their lives. They might superficially condemn the most overt cases of misandry or misogyny, but they are comfortable with others, and they do not want their false worldviews to be challenged.
There will be no end to sexist practices and the harm they bring to men and women unless every person is treated as an individual. Gender stereotypes have become less prominent in modern times, but they have yet to be completely removed from Western life. The unjust biases and assumptions that are at the heart of many social interactions and jokes about gender bring only gratuitous misery for humanity as a whole.
Unsurprisingly, numerous people who are intelligent enough to reject the historical forms of physiognomy are often unintelligent enough to truly believe that one's genitalia or chromosomes dictates one's aspirations, moral character, competencies, and personality traits. Those whose actual psychological traits align with gender stereotypes might even enjoy the fact that various cultural biases favor them. More importantly, these biases might be compatible with their erroneous worldviews.
Without non-physical distinctions between men and women, there can be no basis for any segregation of the genders or for numerous other sexist traditions. Many proponents of the new "physiognomy"--almost always conservatives without fail--support it because they selectively want to preserve certain forms of sexism that are deeply intertwined with their lives. They might superficially condemn the most overt cases of misandry or misogyny, but they are comfortable with others, and they do not want their false worldviews to be challenged.
There will be no end to sexist practices and the harm they bring to men and women unless every person is treated as an individual. Gender stereotypes have become less prominent in modern times, but they have yet to be completely removed from Western life. The unjust biases and assumptions that are at the heart of many social interactions and jokes about gender bring only gratuitous misery for humanity as a whole.
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