Chivalry should be consensual, says Emma Watson

Emma Watson believes that chivalry should be consensual. (Facebook/Emma Watson)

Harry Potter actress and United Nations Goodwill ambassadress Emma Watson is a huge fan of chivalry, but she believes that it should work both ways.

Watson shared that she "loves chivalry," and she is pretty sure it is something that the men would appreciate too. "Isn't that just a nice thing to do for something else? I love having the door opened for me. I love being taken to dinner, it's so great. I think the key is: would you then mind if I opened the door for you?" she told The Telegraph UK.

However, men don't seem to be used to the idea of women being chivalrous as well. When Watson took a date to her favourite restaurant and offered to pay for it afterwards, she made her date feel very uneasy.

"It was really awkward and uncomfortable. It was not going down well. I'm sure he would say he was a feminist but he was just like, 'ooh, I'm not really sure about this,' it's making him feel a bit tetchy," she said.

But Watson appreciated the fact that her date was open minded and they were able to talk about the incident afterward. She explained that she chose the restaurant because it was her favourite, and so she wanted to foot the bill. They agreed that for the next date, the guy would choose the place and then he would pay for it.

"The key is chivalry should be consensual, both parties should be feeling good about that. I think it's a problem when people expect things to be a certain way, to follow a certain status quo," she said.

When she was younger, Watson remembered that her brothers would tease her about the "status quo" and tell her things like, "Emma, why aren't you in the kitchen?" But now, things have changed for them all and even her brothers now consider themselves feminists.

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