Antifeminism and the question of gender on the threshold of the XIX-XX centuries About the theoretical arguments and epistemologicals in social practice

The paradigms and the representations socially and morally set for women are clearly different from their real behaviors and attributes, which are seen as transgressing the norms. This gives rise to some unfavorable ideas, images and [pre]conceptions about the female being that, at the same time, call into question the gender roles. This is the fertile ground for antifeminism linked to the opposition to feminism and to the female intentions of emancipation and vindication of rights. It also encourages the rooted interpretations, stereotypes and traditions based on the imperfect nature and the inferiority of women. The fears and suspicions arising from the actions of women, their alleged power, an eventual reversal of sexual roles or even the ignorance of the female universe are present in society's way of thinking and acting. Likewise, they show the different levels and the expressiveness that antifeminism assumes and which reflect the influence of the Church, of Science and of ideologies in the preservation of the established powers and values, as well as in the definition of the social roles and places of gender.