“Misanthropy Is Limited to Men”

The distinguished Marquis de Maricá says that “misanthropy is limited to men, it doesn’t include women”. Another mistake… Perhaps the maxim applies to recreational misanthropy, misanthropy when cultivated as a hobby; but not at all to genuine, professional misanthropy. This targets, or rather reacts to, human behavior, which is clearly different from that of a stone or a dog, and is present in both men and women. If a woman behaves like a stone, it is true that the misanthrope will spare her. But as long as, oh God, as long as she speaks, as long as she is capable of vibrating the strings and sonorizing a human voice, as long as she is capable of directing a word to another soul, and therefore forcing, impelling, constraining a communicative act and claiming attention for herself, the woman will inevitably be included in the list, the marquis is wrong and there is nothing to be done.