Boys will be men

Controversial commercial turns heads

As said by many across the country, “Boys will be boys”. We see boys fight or make a discriminatory comment, and our response has been that “boys will be boys”. In their new commercial released in January, Gillette pushes the idea that just because a boy makes rude comments doesn’t mean we can simply let those comments slide or say those fights don’t mean
anything. There is no excuse for degrading a woman with a sexual comment.

Gillette’s commercial talks about how men can be better—they shouldn’t be dismissed when they comment inappropriately on anything or fight with each other. They use the idea that “It’s only by challenging ourselves to do more that we can get closer to our best” to persuade men to be better—to hold themselves to a higher standard of man. Though this is a good thought, many people have disagreed with Gillette, believing they were out of line to tell men to be better.

There is a reason we have all been dismissing boys behavior to that simple idea that “boys will be boys”. We don’t want to confront the idea that it’s not okay to treat people the way some
do: fighting with others or demeaning women to just their looks. It’s unfair and unkind.
Though not all men needed a reminder to be better, I still believe this commercial wasn’t out of line on. Many people have been angry with Gillette’s commercial, saying that it was too political and shouldn’t have been released. Journalist Piers Morgan posted on Twitter.
“If Gillette made a commercial predicated on women being bad and this is how they can all be better… the same radical feminists loving this ad would go nuts.”

I do see this being true. However, this is not what happened. Women generally have different ways of acting compared to men. Many women are calm, collected, and think things through more than men do. In an article on “The Good Men Project” written by Lion Goodman, we see that there are differences in men and women’s minds:
“There are many differences between men and women, including brain design and function, the way they feel and know the world, and different beliefs indoctrinated into them by
their families and culture.”
Although women are often times softer and more thoughtful, gender is not the only reason for the way someone acts. The way a child is raised reflects on who they become when they grow up.
Without Gillette bringing up the idea of men needing to be better, who would have? It was just a matter of time before someone had the idea to tell the men of the world that they do need to step it up.
The overall purpose of the commercial isn’t to make men feel bad and change who they are. We need men to remain men. The commercial surfaces ideas of bettering one’s self, and stating the fact that “It’s only by challenging ourselves to do more that we can get closer to our best.”