That's the experience for some neurodivergent or somehow naïve women the first time. I was one of them (I thought older men were being kind with my teenage self). Then you start getting the same comment again and again: it often feels insincere. You start suspecting and learning about all the ways [mostly] men can be manipulating or even dangerous in the streets. It starts becoming bittersweet; you learn to ignore it just in case it's the people with bad intentions. You know that, if someone really wants to tell you that you're pretty or something, they will make an effort to make you feel safer too. And then, you are in your twenties and those men don't talk to you nearly as often, and it's a relief. As a heterosexual/bisexual woman, you hope that the rest of men can see you as more than a pretty body: a human with dreams, hobbies sense of humor, intelligence, whatever. Sometimes it's scary to know that many men don't, but many others do, so... yeah, my leftism hopes it gets better, as with many other social issues.
This is the fear, isn't it? At work, I have a project manager who privately told me one of my juniors asked her out, because she requested a private meeting with him to go over a project that he's assigned to.
I did not expect my job to be having to explain to nerds that a woman talking to you directly isn't an invitation.
I still remember the compliment i got about my eyebrows back in high school. I got super flustered and ran out of the class.
I have a love/cringe relationship with that moment.
women don't do that, because they subconsciously know like 80% of men (including me) would see that as an opportunity for a pickup line, like "I would, if you went out with me" or "a hug/kiss would cheer me up" or some other borderline creepy stuff.
Telling someone they should "smile more" isn't expressing interest. It's a very weird demand. If you'd like to express interest in someone please consider a different approach.
The disconnect between women and men is sad. Women say soo many things with the best of intentions, that just end up cutting way too deep and vice versa.
Someone told me I had an ugly smile once and I am still insecure about my smile to this day. If people told me I had a beautiful smile and that I should smile more, I think that would be amazing. I would be surprised, but really happy.
It was pretty funny when women thought "how would you feel if" would work in this case. They clearly didn't know how starved of positive attention men are.
Yeah, no one has ever told me that I had a beautiful smile and that I should smile more... I never get compliments and very rarely get any appreciation. I helped a friend of a friend fix electrical issues saving him thousands that he didn't have? Just a generic "thanks." The guy offered to feed me because his wife was getting chinese but his wife didn't get me any and they just ate their food while I worked.
Dunno what the intention was, I read it as "you look cute when you smile" but could be "you would look (even) cuter if you smiled". If it's either of those, that's going to my compliment book.
And yes, men are famine level starved of positive attention. So this "creepy demand" (demand??) defintely would count for me.
I had the same thing happen while I was working as a cashier. Turns out she was actually scamming me, they used footage of it happening to train new people.
Tbh she's probably right, I have resting bitch face at best or maybe smol depression at worst lol, it would probably help me develop new interpersonal relationships now that all my friends are dead (mostly OD) or moved (because they didn't want to OD.)
REAL FUN being the only person you know who avoided heroin/fent!
That's not really a male thing, nor is your example an equivalent. All sexes can get the angry face comment because people misinterpret others expressions wrong all the time. Not everyone is lucky enough to have resting beauty face. Heck just yesterday I was literally told by a nationally renowned dentist that my "small polite smile" would in fact labelled a grimace.. oof.
There is usually a sexual connotation in being told to smile (to look prettier to the viewers), while being asked if something is wrong generally doesn't have the same sexual undertones/motivations. The equivalent to the post would literally be a woman getting catcalled/told to smile and them thinking about escape routes. The difference in the gender swap is when the guy hears the smile comment they move on thinking about smiling (as shown by your comment), while the lady hears the smile comment and wonders if she's in an unsafe situation that could possibly end their life.
Don't get me wrong, both situations are awkward and uncomfortable to be in/navigate. Both put the onus the person hearing it to engage their defenses as to dispell/appease the accusations. And while both deal with fear, it really is just the power dynamics and inherent sexual nature that makes for entirely different interactions/outcomes.
(I say woman/man but the scenario still stands when women= any person smaller or weaker and man= any person with an inherent power/advantage over another. So if a big guy did the same to a weaker guy, the scene plays out the same as a powerful lady and the frail lady, or a strong lady and smaller guy.)
you're assuming that because you don't have to live with the reality.
add in the constant awareness that most rapists occur by men against women and most men are stronger than women.
you wouldn't like theae solicitations or straight up molestation and assaults if you were constantly in danger of being raped and being reminded that men found you attractive or available.
I’ve seen you comment around here before and you have a tendency to make bad faith arguments and it seems like maybe lie about who you are to try and make a point and snap at people who question your history while making similar assumptions yourself. If you offered something critically substantial then I’d understand but you often don’t try and simply seem to be a doubter and critic without any real argument. So I’m curious who you are and what you get out of this. If I’m completely off the mark then forgive me but that’s how it looks through the shallow lens of internet commentary