# How did we arrive at Dance = Feminine?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-we-arrive-at-dance-feminine/607003>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [December 21, 2011, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-we-arrive-at-dance-feminine/607003 "2011-12-21T22:07:42Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\
**Post date:** [December 26, 2011, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-we-arrive-at-dance-feminine/607003/21 "2011-12-26T21:23:46Z")

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[QUOTE=Miller]  
I think the question might be better reformatted as, “Why do straight, middle class, white American men think dancing is feminine?” That seems to be about the only subculture where the OP’s observations hold true.  
[/QUOTE]

Because it’s generally their women who torment them with the insistence that they dance? 😉😛

And it’s more like they see _being too good at it_ or \*enjoying it too much \*as being the effeminate thing. As in, they buy into that respectable “straight, middle class, white American men” are supposed to be rhythmless stiffs and proud of it.:dubious:

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**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2011, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-we-arrive-at-dance-feminine/607003/22 "2011-12-27T09:17:37Z")

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Slight sidetrack:

> [@TGWATY](#):
>
> Gene Kelly
> 
> [http://www-tc.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/files/2008/09/610\_kelly\_intro.jpg](http://www-tc.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/files/2008/09/610_kelly_intro.jpg)

He’s not really singing in the rain, he’s singing in the milk (the drops didn’t show up well on film so they mixed the water with milk).

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**Author:** ![Shooby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f475e1/32.png) [@Shooby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shooby)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2011, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-we-arrive-at-dance-feminine/607003/23 "2011-12-27T10:07:16Z")

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The OP is no doubt true for many other places in America, but I’ve taken a bunch of partner dancing classes in the last year and a half (lindy hop and salsa mostly), and we’ve had more leads than follows in about 80% of them. Since dance classes rotate partners and the excess leads will find themselves sitting out some rotations, the problem from my point of view is that _too many_ men are interested in dancing\*!

Also, we need more dance videos in here. Have a dance from a lindy hop jack & jill competition (unchoreographed, random partner, surprise song): [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXDkZR-SNh8](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXDkZR-SNh8)  
\*I will admit that the actual dance nights themselves are usually follow-heavy.

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