"Cat Lady" Isn't an Insult
I know the deeper meaning is that you think women are less than for being single but your delusion is not reality - women love their cats and being single.
One thing they don’t warn you about when you pluck a kitten off the street is that having a cat is something you will be attacked for. If you’re on the internet and you speak up about sexism or dare challenge a man’s take, eventually one will come at you. But they don’t address your point. Instead, they look at your profile, see you have a cat, then circle back to call you stupid and bring up the fact that you have a cat.
How is having a cat an insult? My cat is awesome; he enriches my life and kills bugs. But I know what they really mean. I’m a woman with a cat, so therefore, what, I’m a loser in some way? I’m a lawyer, I have great friends and family, and I have TWO horses - my life is fucking awesome. When I moved, I had a box dedicated to just the awards I’ve collected over the last few years, and it was for everything from horse shows to best mediator. If that makes me a loser, I’ll take that L any day.
Or maybe it’s something else about having a cat that “cat lady” implies. Like, maybe that I’m single, so therefore I am pathetic? The fact that many men still perceive “single” to be an insult to a woman goes to show how out of touch they are. Not only do women enjoy their independence, but, in most instances, being with a man is burdensome. Why would you take on a burden if the other choice is simply not to??
Insane take that some men think it’s insulting for a woman to exist without a man. But that is exactly what these men say when they use “cat lady” or bring up cat ownership as an insult.
There is so much sexism in the idea that a woman can be insulted simply for not having a man. It also demonstrates how overly inflated many male egos are. What value do most men bring to women? Getting married adds to the amount of time women spend on housework. We also see insane shit like men who don’t know their kid’s birthdays, but that is COMMON. I work in family law - on more than one occasion, I have asked for a child’s DOB, and the dad was like, “I will email their mom”. Why would you want to integrate your life with someone like that?
Men who think it’s offensive to own a cat want a woman to have sex with, bear their children, and run a household. However, in this made-up scenario, their hypothetical wives can’t do that full-time because the majority of these men don’t make enough to afford for their wives to stay at home. Which means she’s going to have to do the work of raising children and running a household in addition to working. And yet these men think a woman is less-than for choosing to spare herself a tiring lifestyle. In their eyes, it’s more important for her to have a man than it is to be happy.
And that is gotdamn crazy.