Manspreading: A Feminist Issue?

So here’s an interesting one: Manspreading.

The second it hit the internet, people went mildly batshit crazy. Hello accusations of “feminazis” “looking for a problem where there isn’t one” and the usual generic “f**king feminist sl*ts”. It’s been loads of fun. But let’s take a step back.

Manspreading has been an unofficial “thing” for a while; usually referring to the way men spread their legs and take extra space on seats, specifically on public transport. Earlier this year, New York’s Metropolitan Transport Authority (MTA) launched a public etiquette campaign to discourage the behaviour, and a few arrests were made by the NYPD. The biggest response was people claiming that the campaign is superfluous, unnecessary and discriminatory. On top of the government defending its decisions, many feminists countered by pointing out the fear and victimisation women feel daily on public transport by men who infringe on their personal space, either maliciously or not, and this lead to the aforementioned accusations. Whether or not the campaign is unnecessary, or if the government has the right to “haggle” innocent citizens in this way is one issue. However today I’m going to focus just on the phenomenon of manspreading itself, and the social nuances this simple action carries.

MTA Campaign

We’ll start with the preface that the vast majority of social idiosyncrasies are not organic material that spontaneously appeared in society one sunny afternoon, but rather the result of socially constructed roles embedded in us and our environment. For example there is nothing scientific or natural about girls liking pink and boys liking blue. These standards are artificially constructed by society, such as giving girls only pink toys and boys only blue ones when they're young, so they grow up to believe this to be “normal”, even though 100 years ago it was basically the other way around. Along the same lines, the fact that men “manspread” is not predetermined by a Y chromosome or specific testosterone levels, but by the social norms that we humans have created for ourselves.

So the Ultimate Questions becomes: what social construct has lead to manspreading?

The answer – like most other feminist questions – is gender roles. Specifically ones about body image, dominance, and the link between them. In our society, men are expected to be big, strong, muscular, dominant, sex hungry, macho, etc. This can be seen in the way that men who don’t conform to these standards are put down and shamed for their lack of “masculinity”. And in direct correlation, women are seen to be weak, small, submissive, nurturing, quiet, passive etc. Again, women who don’t conform are “sluts” “bitches” “frigid” and oh boy, the list goes on. An interesting sub-category of these gender roles is how they manifest in physical appearance. Since men are told to be dominant, their physical presentation must also be dominant, with muscle, strong odours, and the space they take up. Manspreading can easily be seen as a direct result of a culture which expects men to be large and powerful, and therefore occupying as much space as possible. It also relates to men’s monopoly on the social power-play between genders*, as strong male representation in the workforce, media and even family life leads men to assume dominance the space they occupy, both physically and metaphorically.

Ok, so toxic gender roles harm both men and women, sure, but why is men feeling confident about the space around them such a bad thing?

For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. I don’t think Newton would have been too thrilled to think his laws were being used to challenge his privileges…

While men are told to dominate their environment, women are told the opposite. Women’s constructed roles of submission and fragility also manifest in physical appearance. The female beauty standard is thin and willowy, and dieting pill companies are thriving on the exponential rise in women’s body insecurities. The fact that small, thin women are considered attractive has a deeper meaning. Women are constantly told to be quiet, passive, small and to take up less space. It’s a very legitimate train of thought to follow, and can lead to all sorts of conclusions. Many psychologists who deal with eating disorders in women focus their therapies on teaching these women how to feel like they deserve their food, their larger bodies, their space that they occupy.

                                                       Lily Meyers "Shrinking Women"

Women apologise much more than men. Women are more likely to have an eating disorder. Women fear sexual assault when their personal space is invaded.

Men are taught to be dominant. Men are more likely to feel confidence in largeness. Men are comfortable to spread in public places.

* * *

Maybe manspreading is not a problem, but the factors that lead to its existence are. Maybe manspreading does not need to be a feminist issue, but manifestations of problematic gender roles are. Maybe I’ve read too far into what is a common tactic to prevent male genital pain whilst sitting, but I don’t think so. Leave your thoughts and comments below; is the MTA being stupid? Is manspreading a feminist issue? What is your experience on public transport?

Hannah

*referring here to male and female binary genders, but also acknowledging that gender roles and social power-plays oppress non-gender binary folk just as much, if not more so.