LogFAQs > #967444893

ZangsBeard posted...

Tbf, I am a poopy head.

https://youtu.be/-BZk9MQa0YA?t=201



adjl posted...

That's not actual mansplaining, though. That's just people falling back on the term any time they don't want to listen to what a dude is saying.

That may have been how the term originated, but it's rarely how it's used now - so its original meaning is almost... well... meaningless.

It's like the term "troll". It originally meant something very specific. Now it's basically just used to refer to almost anyone acting like an asshole (which isn't what it's supposed to mean), or even worse, to refer to pretty much anyone "who disagrees with me".

I'd even lump it in with terms like "problematic" and "toxic", which have been so misused and abused in online discourse to the point where someone simply using them at all is kind of a huge ideological red flag that you are no longer having an actual sincere conversation in good faith, but are being subjected to agenda-driven rhetoric.

It's a large part of what makes discussing social issues (especially on the Internet) such a futile waste of time. Because even if you potentially agree with a concept in principle, the overuse of loaded terminology and appeals to emotion turns the entire thing into a fecal mess. No one is really thinking for themselves, they're just parroting back things they've heard other people say and getting overwhelmed by their own feelings.



adjl posted...

People don't get offended by having their knowledge questioned.

Have you actually met any people? People get offended by having their knowledge questioned all the time. There are literally multiple aspects of psychology that directly address how the brain handles having its preconceptions questioned (ie, poorly).

Sure, being a condescending asshole about it can certainly turn people against you more effectively, but even if you play the role of the most understanding and polite person you can be, there will still be people who take offense at being told they don't already know everything there is to know about a particular subject, even if what they actually know mostly boils down to jack and shit. That's the root of things like the DunningKruger Effect and confirmation bias.

It's most pronounced on the Internet because it's easy to dismiss the qualifications of the person you're talking to without even knowing the qualifications of the person you're talking to ("What he says must be true, his dad works for Nintendo!"). But a habit of dismissing bad faith arguments has left a lot of people completely unwilling to listen to or even consider good faith arguments either. And to react with what is essentially ad hominem attacks to condemn the speaker without even judging their words.

"Mansplaining" has essentially evolved from "You're talking down to her because she's a woman" to "You don't know what you're talking about because you're a man". Which is why it's ultimately become worthless as a concept and a rhetorical tool of shitty people.