Author Topic: What's the antonym of 'misogynist'? (Read 5220 times)

JT · « **on:** March 26, 2006, 07:57:38 PM »

Maybe antonym isn't the right descriptor. I'm wondering why the word 'misogynist' ('miso' meaning hate and 'gynist' meaning women (roughly)), is so commonplace but there isn't, to my knowledge, a word that means woman who hates men.

If you want to get technical (which I know you do), then philogynist could be an antonym of misogynist, but it's not the word I'm looking for. Misanthrope is close, except it means someone who hates all of mankind. Misandrist is the word I'm looking for, I think, except I'm not sure it's correct and I've never seen it in my life until googling for it tonight.

Porter · « **Reply #1 on:** March 26, 2006, 08:17:19 PM »

I've never seen the word misandrist used except in discussions like this one.

Jonathon · « **Reply #2 on:** March 26, 2006, 08:27:15 PM »

You could always try looking it up.

Looks like a perfectly cromulent word to me. I don't know why it's not very common, though; I guess we still live in a fundamentally sexist society.

Also, I believe that both misandrist and philogynist would be antonyms of misogynist. A true antonym is the same in all ways but the opposite in one key way.

Porter · « **Reply #3 on:** March 26, 2006, 08:30:39 PM »

This brings up a very important question -- is there such a thing as a female android?

Jonathon · « **Reply #4 on:** March 26, 2006, 08:39:50 PM »

Data had a daughter in one episode, and they called her an android. Actually, there was also an android version of his mother, too.

Brinestone · « **Reply #5 on:** March 26, 2006, 09:25:46 PM »

I wrote a poem about sexy lady robots once.

Jonathon · « **Reply #6 on:** March 26, 2006, 09:29:59 PM »

But not sexy lady androids.

JT · « **Reply #7 on:** March 27, 2006, 05:20:48 AM »

That link to M-W requires I pay money or register for a free 3 week trial, neither of which I want to do. I tried looking it up, but I couldn't find a reliable source.

Another question: How do you pronounce it? Is it missendrist or misANdrist?

Porter · « **Reply #8 on:** March 27, 2006, 06:34:46 AM »

I know that Data called her an android.

But was he wrong to do so?

I mean, the guy can't even say can't, so I'm not going to trust him on matters of language.

pooka · « **Reply #9 on:** March 27, 2006, 08:03:39 AM »

Are you familiar with Moliere's The Misanthrope?

Porter · « **Reply #10 on:** March 27, 2006, 08:33:45 AM »

Quote

What's the antonym of 'misogynist'?, And why haven't I ever heard it before?

What's wrong with man-hater?

JT · « **Reply #11 on:** March 27, 2006, 09:02:50 AM »

Nothing, really, except it doesn't follow the etymology of misogynist.

-----

pooka, I've read some Moliere, but not The Misanthrope. Why?

Jonathon · « **Reply #12 on:** March 27, 2006, 10:59:48 AM »

Quote

That link to M-W requires I pay money or register for a free 3 week trial, neither of which I want to do. I tried looking it up, but I couldn't find a reliable source.

Another question: How do you pronounce it? Is it missendrist or misANdrist?

Oops. Sometimes I forget that not everyone has a subscription to an online dictionary. >.<

Dictionary.com is good, though not quite as good as Merriam-Webster's. Primary stress should be on mis, and secondary stress should be on an.

pooka · « **Reply #13 on:** March 27, 2006, 02:30:08 PM »

Misanthrope means averse to men. But it is generally used in the wider mankind sense.

JT · « **Reply #14 on:** March 27, 2006, 02:41:49 PM »

Not according to the sources I've seen. Anthropos is from the Greek anthrôpos meaning literally "man" but more accurately translated as "mankind".

From www.etymology.com.

Porter · « **Reply #15 on:** March 27, 2006, 05:16:46 PM »

Quote

Nothing, really, except it doesn't follow the etymology of misogynist.

Also, it's perfectly understandable by any English speaker. Perhaps that's a negative in some situations?

saxon75 · « **Reply #16 on:** March 27, 2006, 05:43:43 PM »

The word man-hater has connotations and/or associations that one might want to avoid.

Porter · « **Reply #17 on:** March 27, 2006, 07:22:35 PM »

What connotations/associations are present with that word that aren't there because of the definition of the word?

It doesn't seem to me that it has negative connotations -- it has a negative meaning.

saxon75 · « **Reply #18 on:** March 28, 2006, 08:56:51 AM »

Man-hater is generally used to describe a certain kind of woman and then only in a pejorative sense. On the other hand, the word misogynist is often used in a more academic sense--usually as an adjective instead of a noun--that doesn't necessarily imply a man, nor is it necessarily pejorative insofar as it is not always directed at a particular person. Man-hater also carries with it a greater sense of irrationality or wrong-headedness than misogynist, probably largely because it's so colloquial-sounding. It's almost never used in a detached, academic context, but nearly always as an epithet.

Porter · « **Reply #19 on:** March 28, 2006, 09:59:57 AM »

To me, mysogny is as ugly a thing as man-hating.

Jonathon · « **Reply #20 on:** March 28, 2006, 10:39:01 AM »

I think that "man-hater" has somewhat bitchier connotations, if only because "misogynist" is Greek and therefore sounds a little more elevated.

saxon75 · « **Reply #21 on:** March 28, 2006, 10:52:55 AM »

Yes, that's what I mean. Misogyny and "man-hating" are equally bad phenomena, but the two words don't carry the same emotional weight. The latter is akin to saying "feminazi" or "dyke." The former is not. I recognize, Porter, that this may not be true for you but I think it's likely that you are the exception.

pooka · « **Reply #22 on:** March 28, 2006, 12:04:22 PM »

I think hating men is as bad as hating women. Though one is less likely to get you behind in the scheme of things as the other.

And as far as the difference between misanthrope and misandry... uh... it's kind of like the difference between saying croissant and crescent rolls. [wanders off topic] If you are not equipped to say croissant with a perfect French accent, I don't know that it's such a sin to say crescent rolls instead.

But I'm with porter that misogyny is no less ugly than man-hating. Or put another way, misogyny is just a fancy way of saying woman-hating.

saxon75 · « **Reply #23 on:** March 28, 2006, 12:08:21 PM »

It's not at all uncommon to have two words in the English language denote the same thing but have different connotations.

Porter · « **Reply #24 on:** March 28, 2006, 12:11:30 PM »

I disagree with what Pooka said about the difference between misanthrope and misandry. Despite their etymological similarities, they mean distinct things. Mistanthropy means hating people, while misandry means hating men, or male people.

I also disagree with Mike that misogyn and woman-hating have different connotations.