There’s this new TV show, Jamestown, about women who were shipped to America to marry the new colonists in 1619. Guardian critic Mark Lawson complained it was somehow ~unrealistic to depict 17th century women having “modern” thoughts like… objecting to rape? And making jokes?
This is so stupid, sexist, and shortsighted, FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS:
I think men like the Mythical Misogynistic Past for a couple of reasons. First, it lets them off the hook for present-day misogyny, because nothing in the present is ever quite as bad as the Mythical Misogynistic Past and so stop your complaining, woman (some tack on racism and Islamophobia and use the Mythical Misogynistic Middle East as their scapegoat instead: notice the use of terms like “backwards” or “medieval").
Second, it gives them a sort of fantasy land where they’re important and powerful, and never have to compromise with or respect women, and can do whatever they want, whenever they want. Or, if they don’t take advantage of this unbridled power, then they’re a very special person who’s much nicer than everyone else, instead of someone practicing basic decency. Because in the Mythical Misogynistic Past it’s not basic decency, that’s going above and beyond!
And third, I find in a lot of male supremacist circles there’s this idea that feminism is an unnatural modern invention, imposed artificially on society (usually by some sort of shadowy female cabal). And even men who are just run-of-the-mill sexist might have inklings of that: that feminism this new thing that no one ever thought of before, and the natural state of humanity is men having absolute power over women. That’s why they’re so insistent on “historical accuracy,” not just in this but in stuff like not having any black people in period dramas – it’s not just how they think it was (it wasn’t), but how they think it’s supposed to be.
