MISOGYNY AND SEXISM IN BENJAMIN FRANKLIN’SOLD MISTRESSES’ APOLOGUE AND DONALD TRUMP’SPUBLIC STATEMENTS: STATESMEN USING HUMOUR ASA COVER-UP

Abstract

Although humor is often regarded as a benign and unifying force, it can also function as a vehicle for expressing deeply entrenched social prejudice and sexism. This paper examines the ways in which misogyny may be concealed through the use of humor, both in historical contexts and in contemporary discourse, focusing on two American statesmen: Benjamin Franklin and his satirical essay-letter Advice to a Friend on Choosing a Mistress (1745), and U.S. President Donald Trump, through a selection of his public speeches and statements. Both figures employ humor to reinforce gender stereotypes in ways that reflect the social and cultural norms of their respective historical periods.

Franklin's letter, presented as a witty piece of advice urging a young man to choose older women as his mistresses, initially appears to advocate for older women as preferable sexual partners. Upon closer examination, however, the underlying assumptions and arguments reduce women to their sexual utility, thereby revealing a misogynistic perspective disguised through satire. A similar rhetorical strategy can be observed in a number of Trump's public remarks, which, often couched in humor and sarcasm, portray women in roles that diminish their competence, worth, or intelligence while using wit as a means of minimizing potential criticism or objection.

Through an analysis of these examples, this paper demonstrates how humor, in certain contexts, functions as a powerful rhetorical device for expressing sexist attitudes while simultaneously enabling those responsible for offensive remarks to evade criticism and accountability by dismissing them as "just jokes." The study further explores the psychological and cultural mechanisms that sustain this dynamic, illustrating how both Franklin and Trump employ humor to disguise and normalize misogyny, thereby highlighting the broader implications of such rhetorical strategies. At the same time, this analysis underscores the need for more critical engagement with the role of humor in perpetuating harmful social attitudes and encourages reflection on whether—and how—contemporary discourse may consciously or unconsciously reproduce historical prejudices.