OK, Grinus: i'm digging up another old'un. I'm not sure if I got what you were pointing to:
I do not recommend it as something to follow directly and to the letter, however there is a lot of truth if you look deep enough in the old saying:
"Treat em mean to keep em keen"
If you look beneath it, at the core message, there are lots of messages succinctly put in that one phrase.
It can be taken the wrong way, it can be taken the right way, depends on your mindset when you interpret it.
Here's what I think -
i'm not asking to be spoon fed; just let me know if i've got to go deeper or not, 'cause this is all i've been able to come up with thus far:
"Treat em mean to keep em keen"
If you look beneath it, at the core message, there are lots of messages succinctly put in that one phrase.
The only messages I have come up with concerning what I perceive to be the core of this message are:
- Without treating women 'mean' once in a while, you will probably not inspire the wide emotional variations that they need in order to remain stimulated (and therefore 'keen'). You've spoken at length about this elsewhere, and also on how 'treating them accordingly' accomplishes this nicely.
- Is there also an element of 'parenting' in this? That is, what you have been saying about women deep down wanting to be treated like children when they behave childishly? (I have been seeing this lately, btw
).
- There's a deeper message here that applies to ALL relationships, even our relations with other guys: TREAT PEOPLE ACCORDINGLY. This is obvious to any of us on this site (Kidd!! has drilled it into our heads enough). But the interesting thing is that, even though it can seem that generally chicks respond better to being treated a little rough, whereas guys respond better to being treated nicely, deep down NO ONE, GUY OR GIRL, will RESPECT YOU (be 'keen') if you respond to their ill treatment with even more 'niceness'. That's my feeling anyway, and I have a saying: "Being respected is far better than being liked." Even with guys, if you let them use you as a doormat, sure they'll be glad to have you around - it boosts their ego - but they sure ain't gonna be 'KEEN' on you.
[SIDE NOTE/RANT: You know, from this perspective, maybe it ACTUALLY is the same with guys & girls, (it's just more noticeable with chicks because there's the issue of attraction) i.e. if you don't treat accordingly, you may be making them feel good about THEMselves (egoic gratification), but certainly not good about YOU. And you'll basically end up only being of use to them when there's nothing better (ie someone they RESPECT) around, 'cause when there IS they'll drop you like a hot potato. Also worthy of note, I think, is that when they ARE in the presence of someone they respect, the fact that someone whom they perceive to be at this level is choosing to spend time with them makes them feel as if their 'stock is being raised' to this person's level, by association, which feels WAY more fulfilling than the egoic gratification offered by the 'doormat'.]
I do not recommend it as something to follow directly and to the letter
It can be taken the wrong way, it can be taken the right way, depends on your mindset when you interpret it.
To me the wrong way is to think that you need to be an asshole all of the time. From the time I was young, I would hear 'that old saying' from time to time, and while I have seen it work, and even successfully used it briefly myself, it always felt inauthentic to me. Actually caused me some anxiety when I was younger: I knew that it worked, but it WASN'T ME, and I couldn't keep up that facade indefinitely. Then I realised: you don't need to be an asshole. Just don't put up with any shit from ANYONE, and don't ever do anything that compromises yourself. That covers the 'mean' part, and ensures 'keenness', or at least respect. And can you expect ANY chick to be aroused by you if they don't RESPECT you? (And what a lot of guys out there don't realise is that getting to fuck her is not the same as getting her aroused by you
)