Give Me Some Sugar

[happiestsadist]

I've been noticing something. Just here and there. Maybe it's the existence of Men's Pocky, a less sweet version for those macho manly men who don't want to eat girly feminine..uh...chocolate-dipped pretzel sticks. Right. Or this helpful list, which will make sure you don't shame yourself by ordering something as revolting as a drink known

Comments

[charlycrash]

Stuff like this makes me want to put my head in my hands, sigh, and go "oh god please shut up, human culture". The ridiculousness of gender makes my brain ache. Dont' forget that MEAT IS FOR MEN RAAAAAAH AND ONLY MEAT NONE OF THOSE FAGGOTY VEGETABLES FOR ME HRRRRRR

My teeth are fucked because of how much chocolate and general sugary food I've eaten over the years. My (de facto) girlfriend is much, much more into sex/nasty porn than I am and I'm much, much more into chocolate than she is (mind you, she likes violent action films, big cars, "big fuck-off dogs" as she puts it and hardcore techno. I like delicate, pretty, elegant things).

Sweet wine is rough, though. Give me something nice and dry. I'm not fond of beer.

[happiestsadist]

Yeah, I didn't want to get into the weirdness around vegetables/vegetarianism and gender because, well, I wanted to go eat lunch and that tends to get me awfully ranty.

As for me, I realized what it was in terms of sweet/bitter last night. I like sweet food and not-sweet beverages. A nice big mug of dark coffee with nothing in it and some kind of pastry is pretty much heaven. (Dammit, now I would kill for a pain au chocolat, and it's all your fault.)

I don't think I'll ever like sweet wine. But then, I didn't think I'd ever like whisky, so.

[charlycrash]

that tends to get me awfully ranty

You and me both. I remember some American advert for some burger joint or something which didn't stray far away from just plain saying "Don't be a faggot: eat some meat". There was, of course, weedy noodle-armed pale bike-riding liberals buying, of course, tofu in the advert. Large-Penised Square-Jawed Real American was, of course, eating flesh. Wish I could remember who it was by.

I love pain au chocolat (which I always mentally translate as "chocolate pain") :) Sorry about that, though :P

I don't understand the appeal of dark chocolate at all. I'm a total chocolate philistine: I'd far sooner have a Kit-Kat than some artisan-made 90%-cocoa organic crap.

[happiestsadist]

I'm a vegetarian, as is g026r, and uuuugh. People tend to presume I forced him into it, as it can't be that he was vegetarian for 5 years before he met me.

For some reason, my giant, culturally varies city does not have much by way of pain au chocolat. it makes me sad. They make up for it with tiramisu, though.

I like dark chocolate, but again, taste is taste. At least feeding your addiction is cheaper than mine.

[ms_daisy_cutter]

In Victorian times, sweets and greens alone were considered ideal food for women (no manly meat or anything)

Which, of course, probably led to a great deal of anemia and protein deficiency (at least for upper-class women, as working-class ones weren't considered "delicate"), which in turn contributed to the idea that women "of breeding" were weak, "neurasthenic," and in need of much more bedrest than men were.

Thinking back on that WWII experiment in which male prisoners fed only bread and water became neurotic, I wonder if modern dieting is likewise creating physiological dysfunction and resulting stereotypes in modern women who diet.

If sweetness is women's food, then men's must be as unsweet as possible.

And if salads are women's food, then men's must be as unhealthy as possible. And if women excel in the classroom, then studying must be "unmasculine." And so on and so forth.

[happiestsadist]

The Minnesota Starvation Experiment? Not just neurotic, self-amputatingly psychotic. And it was still more calories and nutrition than most diets allow for these days.

If feminists were really out to destroy men, all we'd have to do is make a point of noting how womanly it is to not drink plutonium.

[charlycrash]

If feminists were really out to destroy men, all we'd have to do is make a point of noting how womanly it is to not drink plutonium.

Don't worry, I think men have the "do stupid dangerous shit for literally no reason but to prove you're willing to" down already on their own :/

[poto_heart]

I wonder if modern dieting is likewise creating physiological dysfunction and resulting stereotypes in modern women who diet.

This is an interesting thought, and a hypothesis worth researching I think. Not that it'll probably be happening any time soon. Too much money is on the side of the dieting industry =/

[poto_heart]

I have noticed this, too. Also the fact that sweet alcoholic drinks are more often referred to as 'fruity' drinks; from what I gather most of them are fruity in flavor, but I don't think the 'gaaaaaay' implication is entirely coincidental.

And I agree that white chocolate is incredibly gross. It smells so good, but tastes so bad. ;A;

[happiestsadist]

Also the fact that sweet alcoholic drinks are more often referred to as 'fruity' drinks; from what I gather most of them are fruity in flavor, but I don't think the 'gaaaaaay' implication is entirely coincidental.

Ooh, that too.

White chocolate does smell quite lovely, all creamy and sweet and such. Agreed about the taste.

[ms_daisy_cutter]

Hey, I actually like white chocolate... but I also like milk and dark.

[x_creepy_doll_x]

ditto. I eat it ALLLLL!

[arthur_sc_king]

To me, this is yet another example of people being too stupid, lazy, or arrogant to think. Let me explain

Long-windedness continued

[arthur_sc_king]

Stereotypes can also occur without a plausible generalization behind them, but I suspect that's more rare than we think. It could be true that somewhere, at some time, there was a measurable generalization that women generally ate less meat and more sweets than men

Re: Long-windedness continued

[happiestsadist]

It's a good rant, at least. Though in cases of like food generalizations, I'd say it's even less based in reality than many other generalizations.

The backlash against people who prove that stereotypes aren't set in stone will never stop depressing me.

Baking is pretty fun, though. Cooking and baking have helped me retain what sanity I have left.

[kankurette]

You make very good points. I remember when a databook about a manga I read came out, and it was revealed that one of the (male) villains loved sweets. Boy did fans wank about that, about how it was a lame thing for him to like and pussyish and whatnot - and this is a character in a manga! Sweets do seem to be aimed more at women and portrayed as something sinful and naughty. I also wonder if it's because sweetness is linked with pleasure and sensuality, and things that feel pleasurable and sensual are 'unmanly'.

[happiestsadist]

HOLY SHIT. That is exactly it! It is all about the "soft fun pleasurableness is for womenfolks" idea.

[ms_daisy_cutter]

And how many of those wankers were Mountain Dew addicts? Oh, wait, "that's different."

[charlycrash]

For whatever reason, it seems to be especially marked in Japanese culture.