Man-flu

Over the last week or so, I've felt a little under the weather. No big deal, just a bit throaty, sniffly and snotty. But interestingly, it has highlighted (or maybe highlit?) the very contemporary concept of man-flu.

For those of you who don't know...
Man-flu is the same as any other kind of flu - or more accurately, the same as any other kind of cold. The concept of man-flu comes from the belief (usually held by women) that men make a big deal out of a simple cold. In other words, if a man and woman catch the same cold, the woman will battle on and the man will make a fuss.

From a very quick Google search, there doesn't appear to be any evidence that men are hypochondriacs. In fact, I found some evidence to suggest the opposite - but I'm sure there are contextual explanations for these results. The main point is the readiness to see issues, people or differences along gender political lines. There are differences between the genders - this is good. The sad part is the need to invent negative attributes - and maybe this is something we all share.

Like everyone else, if I dig deep enough in my own opinions, there will be negative stereotypes. These may be based on age, weight, gender, class, race, religion, nationality, sexuality or disability (to name just a few). These stereotypes can be learnt and/or implanted at any age. The hard thing is to root them out and the important thing is to challenge them.

I really don't want to misrepresent people and I wouldn't want to be misrepresented by others. For me, it's one of the most important parts of the Social Contract. Some misrepresentations are easier to spot than others but the whole man-flu thing is a bit of a no-brainer.

So next time you hear someone complaining about their cold symptoms, they may well be whinging. But does it need to be a gender issue?