Feminism and the Crisis of Gender Essence

Today, women are no longer like the generation of our mothers and grandmothers.  They demand equality, they want the same respect as men.  Yet, behind this pursuit often lies the ego’s desire for recognition.  In chasing equality, many women are unknowingly drawn into slogans that sound appealing but make them lose sight of deeper values.

From the very beginning, women were created with distinctive qualities: emotional richness, intuitive wisdom, the ability to nurture and transform.  But instead of being honored, modern society convinces women that they must be strong like men.  At that moment, the ego arises, together with resentment of past mistreatment—as if history had only seen women as “decorative vases” in feudal times.

Another reality is that many women grow up without a strong father figure.  Some fathers are absent, weak, or overbearing, leaving a wound of distrust toward men.  Feminist ideology easily exploits this wound, turning it into a so-called movement of “justice.”  On U.S. campuses, one often hears slogans like: “I am a victim. I am oppressed. I am justice.”  As a result, more and more movements arise that shame men—changing how men also see women.

A personal example: my niece once criticized traditional gentlemanly gestures—opening the car door, pulling out a chair, giving flowers, paying for dinner.  She said: “If women can earn money just like men, why should we depend on them to pay?”  This reflects how modern society erases gender differences while losing the beauty of love between man and woman.

When women try to become strong like men, they forget their sacred role: not to compete, but to transform with love.  In its extreme form, feminism becomes a “secular religion” that worships the ego rather than honoring destiny.

The consequences are not only on women.  When men lose their role of guidance, they become weak and uncertain. Love between the sexes loses its natural complementarity.  In schools, boys are taught to be obedient, not aggressive, to “share toys with girls” even when taken from them.  Their natural instinct to protect—part of their masculine essence—is labeled toxic.  Instead of being taught self-control, they are told to deny their strength. In today’s culture, anyone who embodies classic masculinity, such as President Trump, is branded as “toxic masculinity.”  Men are no longer allowed to be themselves.

The African American community in the U.S. is an obvious example: many children grow up with only mothers, without the discipline and silent strength that only a father can teach.  Boys then do not know what it means to become real men.  And when sexual pleasure can be gained easily through smartphones, dating apps, or pornography, men no longer need to strive, mature, or take responsibility.  Women, imitating men, also become careless about sexuality.  The result: society is left without true men and without true women.

A collapsing society is not only the result of weak men but also of rebellious women—not the rebellion of the soul seeking freedom, but the rebellion of the ego, rejecting sacred boundaries.  Women think of themselves as “independent warriors, cold CEOs, goddesses who can be sexy, maternal, and moral all at once.”  But they forget this truth: women were not created to conquer the world, but to transform the world through love.

Modern women may have power, but lack spiritual direction.  They enjoy sexual freedom, but forget the sacredness of sexuality. They demand gender equality, but ignore the natural law of balance.  They declare self-love, yet choose abortion for the sake of career. These are signs of a lost soul.  As Clarissa Pinkola Estés once wrote:

“A woman who has lost reverence becomes dangerous, not because she’s evil, but because she’s empty.”

A society without true men → women lose their orientation.
A society without awakened women → men lose their reason to rise.

This is the vicious cycle.  Healing cannot come from only one side. Women must first heal themselves instead of demanding that men heal them.  Men, likewise, must reclaim their strength to lead.

Half of society collapses because men no longer lead.
The other half collapses because women no longer know who they are.