July 30, 2006

Nerdiness and the New Gender Gap

Shorter Sophie Theis: anecdote, anecdote, hasty generalization, backhanded compliment --

As a male peer of mine said, "School doesn't cater to girls; girls cater to school." Femininity is obedience to expectations, tolerance of hard work, and willingness to work for others, all qualities that when translated to the modern classroom enable academic success. With prideful graduation ceremonies and published matriculations, my community showers girls with praise and attention for fulfilling this societal role, which is now easily quantifiable with a simple transcript, test scores and list of extra-curriculars.

And, finally, a nod at feminism -- `On top of all this, there is the feeling that in order to be considered equal to males, us females have to be better than them. We have to prove our worth.' -- that's immediately undermined by putting the blame right back on women -- `It's all in the outlook.'

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