Why do most men put women on a pedestal?

The market of desire: why men overvalue women

In a market, when demand far exceeds supply, prices skyrocket and buyers lose their minds. Something similar happens in the romantic sphere: the asymmetry between male desire, more intense and less selective, and female supply, smaller and more demanding, creates a dynamic in which many men end up putting women on a pedestal. It is not a matter of romanticism, but of a power imbalance.

Biology as a supply and demand factor

The male sensual drive, more volcanic and persistent, turns men into constant demanders. As some analyses point out, this impulse creates a clear asymmetry: men are always buying, women are always choosing. In the Tinder era, where the supply of candidates is infinite but the female filter is ironclad, bargaining power is concentrated on the female side. An average woman can have dozens of suitors while a man must work hard to stand out. The result: men tend to idealize any woman who pays them attention, inflating her perceived value.

The cost of desperation

Another factor that fuels this idolatry is the antiestéticar of loneliness or of never getting any action. The scarcity of opportunities leads many to lower their standards and treat women like goddesses, even when they bring nothing exceptional to the table. Competition is fierce: there are men willing to submit just to receive a minimum of affection. This behavior, often ridiculed as simping or a lack of dignity, has an opportunity cost: the time and energy spent chasing someone who does not deserve it could be devoted to self-improvement.

The mirage of experience

However, not everyone falls into the trap. Those who have accumulated a long history of relationships or encounters tend to value women less in general. Familiarity with the available supply debunks the myth of uniqueness. The more repetition, the less perceived scarcity. The problem is that most men never reach that level of experience, whether due to shyness, lack of resources or market conditions.

The fallacy of worship as an investment

From an economic perspective, idolizing a woman is an irrational investment. You hand over power with nothing in return, pay enormous opportunity costs and get an uncertain emotional return. Men who behave this way act like buyers in a market without perfect information, where advertising (looks, attitude) hides the product's real quality. In the end, the one who puts a woman on a pedestal is the first to fall off it.

The chain reaction: insecurity and aggression

The imbalance also generates internal conflicts. When a man feels his position is fragile, he reacts with jealousy or violence. The thread illustrates this with the story of a couple where a coworker is hitting on the girlfriend. The options considered range from punching him to showing indifference, including control mechanisms. All of this reflects a tension between the desire to possess and the impossibility of securing exclusivity. The cost of confrontation can be high (lawsuits, job loss), but the alternative —showing insecurity— also has consequences.

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The market of desire has no regulation, is riddled with asymmetries and information is imperfect. As long as men keep competing in a context of artificial (or real) scarcity, idolatry will remain the dominant behavior. The remaining question is whether it is worth leaving the game or whether, as in any bubble, the correction will come when demand moderates.

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