Thor, Tarzan, and the Himbo Problem
We have a himbo problem. The problem is not that we have too many himbos - you can never have enough himbos - or with himbos themselves. The problem is with the definition, and why it leads to “debated” himbos such as Thor and Disney’s Tarzan.
We are all familiar with the three requirements for himbo-dom:
But have we considered why this particular combination is so attractive? It’s obvious why 1 and 3 are appealing to women, but what’s so great about a guy who’s dumb? And just how dumb does a man have to be to qualify, anyway? Is Thor sufficiently dumb to be a himbo? Are we judging on a scale that includes same-universe geniuses like Tony Stark and Bruce Banner? Goofballs like Scott Lang? Or simply against average men one might meet (and avoid) on the street?
All interesting questions, but the wrong ones to be asking.
I contend that a himbo’s attractiveness does not come from being dumb but from being non-threatening, non-toxic, and generally avoiding the kind of hyper masculinity that has too long been held up by mass media as something women should swoon for. And what’s one of the easiest ways to make a guy non-threatening? Make him dumb as a box of rocks.
A man who’s stupid (usually) isn’t going to manipulate and gaslight you. He won’t mansplain or condescend. He won’t feel threatened when you score a promotion or get that diploma. No wonder dumb is so attractive!
The thing is, of course, a man can be smart and also not do those things, but that doesn’t fit with Hollywood masculinity. That’s why it’s easier to find a himbo who respects women than an “average” or smart man in the media, and the himbo, by definition, will also be hot. No wonder women prefer them.
I propose an alternate himbo definition:
With this definition, there is no question whether or not Thor, Tarzan, Kronk, George, or any other himbos fit. We no longer need to decide whether or not Thor’s IQ is sufficiently low for us to objectify him or spend long essays describing just how smart he really is (for the record, he is definitely very smart). We only need to know that we would feel comfortable locked in a room with him or telling him that we just became Queen of Asgard and he would be nothing but happy for us.
Note: Why are 2 and 3 not the same? Because a man can respect women but still be very threatening. Think, for example, of….. okay, at press time neither I nor the Seamista discord server I asked could think of a hot, non-misogynistic male villain, but there’s probably one out there somewhere. Get on that, Hollywood.
In conclusion, Thor is exactly as much of a himbo as you want him to be. ❤
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