Analysis Of Men Explaining Things To Me By Rebecca Sulnit

Rebecca Solnit, author of the article Men Explaining Things to Me, addresses the matter of misogyny that is present in our society as well as all over the world today. In her article she presents the reader with multiple examples of what goes wrong in conversations between men and women. She writes about men that claim they know things and generally assume that women do not. Her efforts to persuade the audience to realize that men are defying women’s knowledge works efficiently by her proper placement of quotes and real-life situations. Solnit’s powerful use of diction convinces the audience to agree with her claim that no matter what the situation, serious or not, a woman’s voice is just as plausible as that of the opposite gender. Sulnit’s

Although we often assert a male with being knowledgeable and having the ability to do many things, we often forget that those are just stereotypes. We also forget to stop and evaluate the type of man we are dealing with and how his personality may affect ourselves. As she refers to Mr. Very Important II she says, “His scorn was so withering, his confidence so aggressive, that arguing with him seemed a scary exercise in futility and an invitation to more insult,” (Solnit 5). This was said during a heated debate with a man that wouldn’t consider a mere woman from the United States’ point-of-view. Many readers can connect with this personal fear considering the fact that some men do use intimidation and sometimes violence to prove their point. Although Solnit has experienced many difficult situations, hearing from her that she was terrified by this man’s strong-willed opinion is saying that sexism is still apparent today. For a man to feel the need to threaten a woman verbally over a subject that could go either way tells the reader that he feels threatened by Solnit’s