From reading the very first sentence of the SCUM Manifesto, you can tell this text is meant to be aggressive, and blatantly goes after every single man who has existed, and will exist. It was written by Valarie Solanas in 1965 and was first self-published in mimeograph form and was sold to women for $1 and men for $2.
The writing opens with Solanas stating that men are genetically deficient this causes them to be emotionally limited, egocentric. and incapable of passion or genuine interaction. They obviously lack empathy, and are unable to relate to anything apart from their own physical sensations. One of the points she makes further in the text is that men spend their entire lives envying women and attempting to be female, which is the reasoning behind the constant fraternization and infatuation with women. Which in my mind goes against todays idea of feminism against the standards of toxic masculinity and the idea of femininity being weak that is seen throughout society.
Some people have stated and analyzed the text as a parody or a satire, as a result of the exploration of Valerie Solanas’ mental state. She was close with Andy Warhol in the 60s and in a fear that he would’ve taken her work as his own shot him and a gallery assistant, nearly killing Warhol. At trial she was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia but still stood trial to plead guilty and spend 3 years in prison for assault.
