Posted on 12/28/2010 7:18:34 AM PST by Kaslin
In my previous column, I offered an answer to the question: What do men want?
I made the case that what men most want from the woman they love is to be admired.
If my answer is correct, and if we presume that the natures of men and women are complementary (a presumption many men and women understandably doubt given how often men and women do not get along), what women most want must be related to that which men most want.
I believe it is.
What a woman most wants is to be loved by a man she admires.
I am well aware that to say this today is akin to announcing that the sun revolves around the Earth. For half a century, we have been told that what women most want is professional success and equality. And to the extent that a modern "liberated" woman does admit to wanting a man to love, she will say that she wants a "partner" who is her "equal." And girls and women have been told -- or, more accurately, have had drummed into them -- that equality means that both sexes are essentially the same (except for the physical differences) and therefore want the same things. Equality and sameness have been rendered synonymous. That is why she cannot say -- and ideally wouldn't even admit to herself -- that she wants a man to admire; that would be "sexist," as it would imply an unequal relationship.
The notion that a woman most wants a man, admirable or not, has been scoffed at. This was encapsulated by the famous feminist slogan "A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle." Even feminism that did not agree with the fish-bicycle metaphor communicated to young women that an "authentic" woman would not have as her greatest desire to bond with a man.
Today, feminism holds less appeal for young women than it did for the previous generation, but "equality" remains the liberal god of the day. That renders my theory -- that a woman wants to be cherished by a man she admires -- politically incorrect in the extreme.
It is problematic enough to say that a woman most wants a man. But that pales compared to the claim that she most wants a man whom she admires. That seems to affirm gender inequality. The image it conjures up is of a woman looking up to her man as if he were some sort of lord and she his serf.
Yet, any woman who believes that she is married to an admirable man would laugh at such a dismissal. Admiring one's husband doesn't render a woman a serf. It renders her fortunate.
The truth is that almost nothing -- including job success -- elevates a woman in her own eyes as much as being loved by a husband whom she admires. That is why when married women get together, they don't talk about their jobs nearly as much as men do. They talk, among other things, about their man if they are proud of him, and complain about him if they are not. Even most feminists are happiest when married to a man they admire.
And what is it that women most admire in a man? From decades of talking to women on the radio and, of course, from simply living life, I have concluded that an admirable man is one who has three qualities: strength, integrity and ambition.
All three are needed. Strength without integrity is machismo. Integrity without strength or without ambition is a milquetoast. And ambition without integrity is a successful crook.
Women are drawn to strong men. Though many men, when asked the secret to their long marriage, answer, "I learned to always say, 'Yes, Dear,'" the truth is that most women are not attracted to "Yes, Dear" men who always give in to a woman's whim. They are attracted to a man who exhibits strength in the outer world and at home as husband and father.
But that strength must come with integrity. If it doesn't, he is a strong bad man. And while more than a few women fall for bad men (precisely because of the power of masculine strength to attract women), most women do not want such a man over the long run.
And ambition does not mean that he is necessarily rich, but that he is a hard worker who wants to improve himself; plenty of men who earn relatively little are admired and loved by their wives. That is why a major "turn-off" to most women is a husband who sits and watches television all night (let alone all day).
The beauty of all this is that it all comes together for men, for women and for society.
Women get what they want most: to be married to and loved by a man they admire. Men then attain what they want most: to be admired by the woman they love. And society gets the thing it most needs: admirable men.
Unfortunately, none of this is taught at college.
You got that right sister. We are not all like that. The author is correct.
Things they dont have . . .
Men - No matter what you may think, you will never really know the answer to this thread’s query until you negotiate a divorce settlement.
Just my experience in general and from my friends who have gone through divorce because of the financial pipe dreams and fantasies of the over pampered “American princess”.
Just look at the damn commercials - diamond rings, lexus cars, BMW’s, etc.
Most guys see that and know the deal.
You are projecting
Bump
Good grief.
I hardly know what to say, here. Except that you might benefit from a character upgrade in both females and friends.
If I have time in the next week or so, perhaps I’ll FReepmail you.
Time for an attitude adjustment, darlin’
I have never met a woman that was not like this.
I would love to be proven wrong on this.
It is so true. They want the man to do everything and serve them while they do nothing.
I have never met a woman that was not like this.
I would love to be proven wrong on this.
No, we're not. The "American Princesses" mentioned by another poster give us a bad name.
Guys, do yourselves a favor and learn to talk to the wallflowers and less flashy women. You might be pleasantly surprised.
The poster is projecting without having any clue
“What do women want?”
I’ll tell you when I find out.
The Right to Shoes, of course.
You are projecting. Just because there are some women like that, does not mean that every woman is like that
Are you one of those who wants us in the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant? No thanks
no fooling. I just took 3 aspirin.
LOL
Actually, due to the influence of feminism, glock is correct. Not all women, all the time, but most these days. The joke is they don’t even have to stay married to get it. Once a man gets married, she owns him, and the courts will enforce it. If you don’t like it, tough, but that is the world men live in, and not enough women stand up and oppose it to make a difference.
*banging my head on wall*
“Women want self same sovereignty o’er their lovers as themselves.” Canterbury Tales
A successful man is one who makes more than his wife can spend.
A successful woman is one who marries just such a man.
Unfortunately, the above mentioned joke is true for too many couples.
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