It can be difficult for a man to find the line between being chivalrous and infantilizing women in modern relationships. Some women expect men to drive, open car doors, and pick up checks. Others prefer a more even split.
One man has proven that there’s still consensus about one occasion in which a man should let his woman sit back: pumping gas.
Creator Kiem (@shykiem1) recently posted what he referred to as a “social experiment.” In the TikTok, Kiem is pulling into a BP station. He spots a woman pumping gas while a man sits in the car.
Kiem calls out to the man, “That your lady?” When the man answers in the affirmative, Kiem responds, “Damn, she look good as hell.”
Then Kiem pulls away, chuckling.
He captions the post, “Dude got his girl pumping gas is crazy lol.”
People agree. Kiem’s post is flooded with comments blasting the man for chilling in the passenger seat while his significant other pumps gas.
As of this writing, the TikTok has racked up over 1,000 comments and nearly 1 million views.
Relationships norms in flux
A few generations back, women couldn’t vote, drive, own property, or enjoy many of the rights that they have today.
Legal and societal changes have created new relationship dynamics. Today, traditional gender roles are much less rigid.
It’s much more common to see a man expertly swaddling an infant or mending a shirt than in decades past. Conversely, millions of women hold jobs long considered “men’s work,” or perform repairs to their homes or automobiles that their grandmothers would never have considered doing themselves.
While there have been shifts in relationships between men and women, not everything has changed.
Just because a woman fixes a leaky faucet doesn’t mean she doesn’t want to be treated like a lady. Similarly, a husband who changes a diaper might always walk closest to traffic when they stroll down the street.
As reactions to Kiem’s post prove, some remnants of traditional chivalry remain.
‘He’s slackin’
There are any number of reasons why the man in Kiem’s post could’ve stayed in the car while his significant other pumped gas. He could be injured or sick, for instance. Or the woman may simply prefer to pump her own gas.
Viewers aren’t having it.
“Real cause why is she pumping the gas bro,” wrote one.
Said another, “You really just humbled him.”
“Yesssssss let him know he’s slackin’,” a third commented.
A few people thought that Kiem was out of line. One said he spoke of the woman, rather than to her, as if she was “some piece of meat.”
One person pointed out, “Now what if his girl told him no I’ll pump gas and he didn’t want to fuss back with her on it. Never truly knows what’s going on in people life.”
Most people took Kiem’s side, however.
Several suggested that the woman might even be rethinking her relationship.
“Yk she thought about getting a new man all day after this,” opined one.
Wrote another, “She said wait come back.”
Kiem’s account does not accept direct messages. He did not respond to an inquiry sent via TikTok comment.
@shykiem1 #socialexperiments #shysoconfident #publicinteractions ♬ original sound – _ShyConfident
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