Depending on whether you’re a man or a woman, the way you walk through this life can be wildly different. In 2017, Pew asked Americans what qualities they value most in men and in women.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, most respondents said that physical attractiveness, being nurturing, and being empathetic are the top traits for women. For men, the top three are honesty, morality, and professional success.
It seems like we all still have a long way to go when it comes to traditional gender roles. For instance, there are a lot of things men think women might never understand about being a man.
But this time, we’re shining a light on the things that are deemed normal when men do it, but somehow weird if a woman does it. We’ve found the most interesting answers from folks in the thread where one netizen asked: ” What are men allowed to do but when women do it it’s a big no-no?” and present them to you here!
#1
Opt out of participating in family function planning scheduling. A husband/man can just not participate and no one bats an eye. But if the in laws reach out to organize Thanksgiving/Christmas/summer/family traditions and she doesn’t respond or jump into happily planning she is a “[jerk] that is trying to steal our son/brother/friend”.
And her parents wouldn’t reach out to him to expect him to plan. She gets the privilege of doing both sides of the family.
Image source: enduranceathlete2025, Hanna Pad
#2
Leave most of the parenting to the other partner.
Image source: tronassembled, Yan Krukau
#3
Age, past 35.
Image source: raerae1991, Polina Tankilevitch
#4
Make choices about their reproductive health.
Image source: princessapart, MART PRODUCTION
#5
Not know how to do basic life skills.
If a man doesn’t know how to clean, cook, do laundry etc women are expected to do it for them and/or their mothers are blamed for not teaching it
Women are just not allowed to not know. If they don’t know they have to figure it out.
Image source: thewizardsbaker11, Andrea Piacquadio
#6
Walk alone at night.
Image source: HawkLittle9912, Rene Terp
#7
Be president.
Image source: Blondenia, RDNE Stock project
#8
Enjoy bodily autonomy.
Image source: Gingersnapspeaks, Pavel Danilyuk
#9
Grow a beard.
Image source: Lonely-Success3251, Lukas Hartmann
#10
Have hair everywhere but their head.
Image source: Unlucky_Bug2132, Anna Shvets
#11
Be topless.
Image source: SarahLynnThe90sKid, David Lago Rodríguez
#12
Brutally make fun of their buddy’s haircuts.
Image source: DepartmentOfJustAss, whoiswasiq
#13
Hide or guard their emotions and feelings.
I’ve met women who do this much like men, and they always seem to be shunned away from the rest of the girls. .
Image source: I_Am_Simple, cottonbro studio
#14
Eat big portions. Men are “hungry,” women are “unladylike.”.
Image source: io-psychologist, Andrea Piacquadio
#15
Show anger. Men get respect, women get called emotional.
Image source: uwuvxdh, Liza Summer
#16
Show agitation at the office or in meetings.
Image source: aenim, Yan Krukau
#17
Have hair on your legs or armpits. Not wanting to be alone with your own kids. Not doing a single chore on days they have to work. Not wearing makeup to important events. Watching something on their phone at events they don’t want to be at. Not being ready for kids until their 30s or 40s (even though s***m quality decreases with age).
Image source: Routine-Barnacle999, Karolina Grabowska
#18
Not know how to handle their children. This peeves me. How is it women get slated for not being able to handle a tantrum or children’s behaviour but for men it’s just cute….
Image source: Dry_Vermicelli5647, Phil Nguyen
#19
Not smiling.
Image source: Jakub-Martinec, Marcelo Dias
#20
Speak up for ourselves in the workplace.
When men do it, they’re being confident and decisive and fill in the blank with a positive term.
When women do it, we are being b*tches or, my favorite expression — we *have a tone*. No man on this earth has ever been told in the workplace that he *has a tone*.
Image source: FunDirector7626, Antoni Shkraba Studio
#21
Ask for an abortion.
Image source: Vast-Website, RDNE Stock project
#22
Sit around on holidays. They might get up to help move a table and chairs but otherwise they get to sit in a recliner all day watching sports while the women do all the work.
Meanwhile if there’s a grown woman in the family sitting for longer than 5 minutes she’s a lazy [jerk] not doing her share of work.
Image source: EeileeZ, Lisa from Pexels
#23
Have pockets large enough to hold things.
Image source: Ok-Ice1253, Alena Shekhovtcova
#24
Casually mention [self-pleasure] as a normal thing that is done in life.
Image source: fuckassssshitf*ck, Mizuno K
#25
Standing up for yourself. Easy way to get labeled a [jerk].
Image source: h1a4_c0wb0y, RDNE Stock project
#26
Burping. if i let out a big belch, my dad commends it. if my sister does the same thing, he is disgusted and says “that’s not cute :/“
edit: just for clarity, my dad would do literally anything for my sister or i, we constantly talk about how grateful we are to have him. this is the ONLY thing i’ve ever seen him say to her, and she’s never told me she has any ill feelings toward it, just something i noticed. it doesn’t make it okay but rest assured she wouldn’t trade him for anyone.
Image source: NecessaryNumerous821, Andrea Piacquadio
#27
Have five kids across three spouses, cheat notoriously, pay [adult workers], defend sexual [attack], while being bankrolled by a guy with 14 kids with 6 women, mostly out of wedlock.
Image source: jarena009, Polina Zimmerman
#28
Have a high body count.
Image source: deetzle, anait film
#29
Abandon their kids!
Image source: bzubavicius, Pixabay
#30
After reading many saying “Have an opinion”, it just clicked for me why women are naturally so indirect with their communication!
I always wondered why they won’t just be direct with men, especially in relationships or when dating.
You’all been conditioned into doing this by society! 😂.
Image source: Multi_Trillionaire, Maksim Goncharenok
#31
Abandon their children b/c they just can’t deal with it all, or for no reason at all.
Image source: StarBabyDreamChild, Pixabay
#32
Age.
Image source: Bunny_OnTheMoon, Nataliya Vaitkevich
#33
Be angry.
Image source: kdawg09, Engin Akyurt
#34
Be a deadbeat parent 😅 heading into year 6 of my kid’s ‘donor’ deciding fatherhood wasn’t for him (has since abandoned a second kid too, me and that kid’s mum are now best friends and are raising the kids together).
Image source: NefariousnessFun2941, Alena Darmel
#35
Speak up in meetings. No really. There’s studies on this.
Image source: StatusTics, fauxels
#36
Have opinions.
Image source: Kaurifish, cottonbro studio
#37
Get called a great parent for doing things with their kid one day a week. Oh and they get to pick the fun weekend things and ignore the boring stuff. Double points if they have a YouTube channel.
Image source: cingalls, Ron Lach
#38
Interrupt men while they’re talking….
Image source: PeachyPesco, fauxels
#39
Women are expected to be the parent that never makes mistakes.
Image source: Awkward_Public_4997, Kindel Media
#40
Have a bad day and act grumpy.
Not smile when dealing with coworkers.
Raise their voice in the workplace.
Walk alone at night, in general.
Image source: RnDMonkey, Polina Zimmerman
#41
Date or marry much younger men.
Image source: bonitaycoqueta, Deesha Chandra
#42
Write bland to the point emails.
Image source: No-Walk-7771, Andrea Piacquadio
#43
Control their reproductive rights?
Image source: Current-Depth8223, Antoni Shkraba Studio
#44
Abandon their child. I say this laying on a hospital couch next to my sleeping wife after she just gave birth to our daughter.
Single moms pick up the slack all the time and the farther is just considered a dead beat. If a mother abandoned the family, she is considered vile and heartless.
Image source: HeyImAntonio, RDNE Stock project
#45
Scratch our [private stuff] nonchalantly in public.
Image source: joedirt75, Anna Shvets
#46
Stand up comedy. Much harder for women to be liked and accepted as funny.
Image source: Impressive_Touch1118, Stewart Munro
#47
Be ugly/unkempt.
Image source: Commercial_Stage_603, cottonbro studio
#48
Fart.
Image source: Aggressive_Shoe_7573, Vinicius Quaresma
#49
Sit with legs wide apart. Why it’s acceptable for men?
Image source: CyanPomegranate11, cottonbro studio
#50
Nothing. Women can do it all, men just won’t let them.
Image source: Weeshi_Bunnyyy, Ketut Subiyanto
#51
Viciously insult their good friends to their face constantly.
Image source: freshly-stabbed, Matheus Ferrero
#52
Probably to over explain something in depth, but do it in a way that is completely wrong or backward. Men love to do this, and they’re good at it, but when women do it they seem to get called out 🤔.
Image source: LSIeducate, Thirdman
#53
Writing your name in the snow while [peeing].
Image source: Bright-Struggle-3237, JERIN MATHEW ZACHARIAH
#54
Play a didgeridoo.
It’s a taboo in Aboriginal culture for a woman to play a didgeridoo. Stores won’t sell them to women and there are massive signs asking those who purchase them not to allow women to play them.
This applies to all women, not just Aboriginal women.
Image source: alstom_888m, Kübra Aydın
#55
Have equal representation in government in the US.
Be president in the US.
Have strong opinions. When men do this, it’s normal. When women do this, they are a [jerk], a ball buster, a shrew, etc.
Control what happens to her own body. Make her own reproductive choices. No one tells a man what to do with his testicles. But everyone seems to want to tell a woman what to do with her uterus.
Have lots of [intercourse] with different people. When men do this they are seen as studs and are applauded. When women do this, they are labeled as sluts and denigrated.
Image source: mom_with_an_attitude, August de Richelieu
#56
Have body hair, particularly leg hair. No women ever demands men shave their legs, nor refuses to date men with leg hair and claim it’s their ‘preference’
Like I genuinely get so angered by men who prefer hairless women and defend their right to have a preference, when they themselves have the same d**n hair on their legs. Gtf over yourself, we’re all mammals. .
Image source: Proper-Classic5241, Rafael Alexandrino de Mattos
#57
Walk alone at night.
Image source: Ichoosethebear, Юлия Здобнова
#58
Have much younger romantic partners.
Image source: MMTisours, Tan Danh
#59
Go topless at the Superbowl. Usher? No problem. Janet Jackson? Absolutely not. But she didn’t even go topless really.
Image source: Imaginary_Chair_6958, Christopher Alvarenga
#60
Pee standing up.
Image source: flinstonepushups, Miriam Alonso
#61
Sleep around.
Image source: Lesbian_Goblin, Andrea Piacquadio
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