Missing in action?

Whatever happened to the Renaissance Man? The knight in shining armour? The gutsy hero with the winner-takes-all attitude? Under the onslaug...

Whatever happened to the Renaissance Man? The knight in shining armour? The gutsy hero with the winner-takes-all attitude? Under the onslaught of girl power, sometimes it feels like the archetype just shrivelled up and evolved into the New Age man…not that there’s anything wrong with him — he helps out in the kitchen, changes diapers while effortlessly coordinating parent-teacher meetings and board meetings and manages to get the missus breakfast in bed, all without breaking into a sweat.

Oh, I’m sorry, not met too many of those in real life? More’s the pity, but Hollywood comes up with the packaging, not little people like you and me, who would love to buy into the whole thing. So if the change in stereotype is an indication of progress, then why do you have these very modern women — the generation that came after the bra-burning Power Puff girls who demanded (and won?) equal rights — yearning for a phase when the knight came by to rescue his damsel and didn’t expect her to engineer her own escape with a GPS-enabled handheld device and state-of-the-art incendiary devices.

When Charlie’s Angels are in vogue and it is so very cool to be able to kick-ass your way out of trouble, why are so many girls wistfully looking for that slightly old-world charm, not the metrosexual so much as the chivalrous type who holds the door open for you? Are we regressing? Do we not, shock-horror, like the new, improved version? What would Microsoft think of this disdain for the upgrade? Where would be without the newer! better! sleeker! pulse that’s been hard-wired into our brains?

Story continues below this ad

Not that men have been conditioned into becoming multi-taskers or that chivalry is dead, or that women should go back to knowing their place (in the kitchen, as any of those amiable knights would tell you), progress on one level is good (and of course it’s not progress if it’s only in big cities), but here’s what’s crucial…If we’ve been conditioned to ‘upgrade’ our notion of what the perfect man should be and men have been conditioned to learn how to wash the dishes and deal with ‘their’ women in power suits possibly making more money than them, then why do so many women feel they’re missing out on something? Has the 21st century lost out on the magic of romance?

Is there any connection between this and teenagers getting more hard-ass and less innocent every day? Simply because they’ve stopped dreaming of a dashing knight sweeping them off their feet. Nowadays it’s more likely to be the other way around…a couple of not-so-girlie-girls in the latest Dodge Viper, or whatever’s doing the rounds.

H-1B $100,000 entry fee explained: Who pays, who’s exempt, and what’s still unclear?

Explained7 hr ago

The White House's decision to impose a $100,000 entry fee on H-1B visa holders has sparked worry among Indian tech workers and students. While uncertainties remain about its implementation and exemptions, major tech companies have cautioned employees against traveling. The policy could lead to a shift towards other visa categories and potentially change the STEM immigration pipeline.

View all shorts

Live Blog