Molly O’Mara

Professor Fielding
CRCW 103
February 11, 2019
Has Feminism Become Too Anti-Male?

Boys and young men today do not experience the same structures of support that girls

have due to the rise of feminism. Today’s society needs to ensure young men do not grow up to

become misogynists, an issue contradicting the feminist movement. On July 25, 2018, Jessica

Valenti, an author of books on feminism, wrote an opinion article in the New York Times

addressing this problem. In her, “What Feminists Can do for Boys”, Jessica Valenti effectively

convinces her audience that society needs to ensure men do not grow up to be misogynists

through the use of appeals to ethos and pathos, while the lack of statistics and logic is detrimental

to her argument.

Valenti claims young men are being radicalized into believing their problems stem from

women’s progress and are growing up to be misogynists as a result. She targets all citizens of

American saying they have not built the same structures of support for boys that we have for

girls and the culture between the two genders is not equivalent. This article is conversational and

primarily opinionated, lacking logic and support for her arguments. The support for her article

stems from the use of pathos and ethos, appealing to both her own credibility and the audience’s

emotions.

Appeals to ethos are prominent throughout the article, “What Feminists Can do for

Boys”. The author, Jessica Valenti is the author of six books on feminism, giving her credibility

regarding the topic of this article. To describe an extreme misogynist, Valenti uses an example

and writes, “We’ve seen young Americans flock to the work of Jordan Peterson, a Canadian
psychology professor and YouTube philosopher who’s made his name refusing to call students

by their preferred pronouns and suggesting men are in charge because they’re just better suited

for it” (par. 8). By using the term “we”, Valenti is relatable to the audience. In addition, using the

example of a psychology professor and philosopher strengthens her argument by providing

evidence of what some boys grow up to be in today’s society. This article closes with the

statement, “Until we grapple with how to stop misogynists themselves – starting with ensuring

boys don’t grow up to be one – women will never be free” (par. 13). Appeals to ethos are made

in this quote because it addresses the character of the reader by using the term “we” and making

a call to action. Ethos are beneficial in this article to provide credibility to the argument.

Pathos are the main source of rhetoric is “What Feminists Can Do for Boys”. Addressing

a sensitive topic, Valenti claims “feminism has birthed dozens of online and real-life spaces

where girls can find alternatives to the sexist status quo. But boys and young men who are

struggling have no equivalent culture” (par. 5). This explains boys and young man have none of

the resources women do to deal with gender inequalities, which is an emotional topic for both

men and women as they are introduced to this idea. In addition, the sad explanation of the

struggles boys face in today’s society is furthered by the statement that they are “susceptible to

misogynist hucksters peddling get-manly-quick platitudes and dangerous online extremist

communities” (par.7). There is no way for boys to avoid extremist communities especially with

modern access to the internet. Valenti explains the inevitable future of males by writing, “Boys

and young men are not seeking these spaces because they inherently hate women or think they

are inferior. They seek them out because they are desperate for community and answers in a

confusing time of their lives” (par. 10). This gives the audience a sense of sympathy for boys and

young men as they are spoon-fed the wrong ideas in a time they are trying to find their own
identities. Appeals to emotion play a big role in supporting Valenti’s argument as the use of logic

and facts lacks.

This article contains more logical fallacies than logic, which is disadvantageous to

Valenti’s argument. She argues, “While women protest, run for office, and embrace the

movement for gender equality in record numbers, a generation of young, mostly white men are

being radicalized into believing that their problems stem from women’s progress” (par. 1). This

implies a whole generation of young men are growing up to believe the same thing. Also, Valenti

claims, “Men have more cultural and economic power than women” (par. 11). Many people

could argue her statement, especially because there is no evidence or facts in the article to

support this idea. The author then writes, “But issues don’t hurt women, men do” (par. 13). Once

again, she generalizes a group and adds no evidence whatsoever to this argument. The absence of

logos throughout “What Feminists Can Do for Boys” may lead the audience to trust Valenti less

because she has no support for many of her arguments.

By using rhetorical appeals such as ethos and pathos, the Jessica Valenti tries to convince

her readers to create a culture where boys experience the same support as girls so they do not

grow up to be misogynists. However, her arguments could be strengthened by supporting them

with statistics and facts. The article is entirely opinion with only one uncited example so

Valenti’s claims are not as effective as they could be since this issue is relevant in today’s

society. In her, “What Feminists Can do for Boys”, Jessica Valenti convinces her audience that

society needs to ensure men do not grow up to be misogynists through the use of appeals to ethos

and pathos, while the lack of statistics and logic is detrimental to her argument.
 Works Cited

Valenti, Jessica. “What Feminists Can Do for Boys.” The New York Times, The New York

Times, 25 July 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/07/25/opinion/feminists-misogyny-

patriarchy.html.