DANIELLA BIANCHI
DECEMBER 14th, 2021
Chivalry shouldn’t exist. I stand for being treated like an equal. I feel silly and incapable when I am with a guy and they treat me like a precious little doll. Surprisingly, I am a human that can look after myself! This means I can open my own door, I can order my own food, and if I forget to bring a jacket on a night out, that’s my fault. Here’s
I had a date the other night (and there’s not going to be a second date). The guy was nice, but his “gentleman” values were way out of this period. He insisted on opening every single door for me, would not walk through an entrance before me, and tried to order food for me (a big pet peeve). All this on the surface may seem like a kind thing to do, but it made me feel like an inferior. For me, relationships should be level partnerships. I’m not a fan of having my voice taken away or being viewed as someone that needs protection. Of course, I am not one to stay silent for too long, so I questioned him. I asked “if I was a male, would you be doing these things for me?” and he replied no. I said why not, and he answered that “it’s just different with girls”.
Why shouldn’t you be a nice person to everyone regardless of their genitalia? This idea of chivalry makes us girls feel like we are not being taken seriously. Why don’t we just treat everyone with the respect that they deserve? Please don’t use the “oh, he was just being nice” excuse on me because this doesn’t cut it. Is it nice to not let someone say what they want to eat at the restaurant? I don’t think it’s fair to be treating girls in such an old-fashioned manner. I’m saying no to this now and I’m saying no to this forever – surely, I can’t be the only one that feels this way.
So how do we change this dynamic? I thought in our progressive 21st-century, things like this didn’t happen anymore - I guess I’m just a naive girl. In my blog on gender inequality in Australia, the facts shocked me, but I am now frustrated from my firsthand experience of being seen as weak because I am a girl. Of course, I can just say that the key is education, and yes, learning from a young age that treating everyone respectfully is important… but what do we do about those who have already been through the education system - how do they learn? We must start the conversation on social media, question our language and actions, start the dialogue about what is right and what is wrong in our conversations, and destroy this divide among the sexes. Sometimes people don’t even know or realise what they’re doing so when you start to question them it makes them think about their actions. This idea of treating her like a delicate little princess is trash. Heck, princess as a title, isn’t even relevant nor important in Australian culture, so why would we admire such a concept in our everyday lives?
Equal treatment, I don’t want this “special treatment” - that’s all I’m asking for. Start questioning, stop ignoring and suppressing, and ask for change. Can we abolish this outdated notion of chivalry ?
the go
on the outdated view of chivalry. I had a date the other night (and there’s not going to be a second date). The guy was nice, but his “gentleman” values were way out of this period. He insisted on opening every single door for me, would not walk through an entrance before me, and tried to order food for me (a big pet peeve). All this on the surface may seem like a kind thing to do, but it made me feel like an inferior. For me, relationships should be level partnerships. I’m not a fan of having my voice taken away or being viewed as someone that needs protection. Of course, I am not one to stay silent for too long, so I questioned him. I asked “if I was a male, would you be doing these things for me?” and he replied no. I said why not, and he answered that “it’s just different with girls”.
Why shouldn’t you be a nice person to everyone regardless of their genitalia? This idea of chivalry makes us girls feel like we are not being taken seriously. Why don’t we just treat everyone with the respect that they deserve? Please don’t use the “oh, he was just being nice” excuse on me because this doesn’t cut it. Is it nice to not let someone say what they want to eat at the restaurant? I don’t think it’s fair to be treating girls in such an old-fashioned manner. I’m saying no to this now and I’m saying no to this forever – surely, I can’t be the only one that feels this way.
So how do we change this dynamic? I thought in our progressive 21st-century, things like this didn’t happen anymore - I guess I’m just a naive girl. In my blog on gender inequality in Australia, the facts shocked me, but I am now frustrated from my firsthand experience of being seen as weak because I am a girl. Of course, I can just say that the key is education, and yes, learning from a young age that treating everyone respectfully is important… but what do we do about those who have already been through the education system - how do they learn? We must start the conversation on social media, question our language and actions, start the dialogue about what is right and what is wrong in our conversations, and destroy this divide among the sexes. Sometimes people don’t even know or realise what they’re doing so when you start to question them it makes them think about their actions. This idea of treating her like a delicate little princess is trash. Heck, princess as a title, isn’t even relevant nor important in Australian culture, so why would we admire such a concept in our everyday lives?
Equal treatment, I don’t want this “special treatment” - that’s all I’m asking for. Start questioning, stop ignoring and suppressing, and ask for change. Can we abolish this outdated notion of chivalry ?