When the Himalayan peasant meets the he-bear in his pride, He shouts to scare the monster, who will often turn aside. But the she-bear thus accosted rends the peasant tooth and nail. For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.
When Nag the basking cobra hears the careless foot of man, He will sometimes wriggle sideways and avoid it if he can. But his mate makes no such motion where she camps beside the trail. For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.
...When the early Jesuit fathers preached to Hurons and Choctaws, They prayed to be delivered from the vengence of the squaws. 'Twas the women, not the warriors, turned those stark enthusiasts pale. For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.
...So it comes that Man, the coward, when he gathers to confer Whith his fellow-braves in council, dare not leave a place for her Where, at war with Life and Conscience, he uplifts his erring hands To some God of Abstract Justice--which no woman understands.
And Man knows it! Knows, moreover, that the Woman that God gave him Must command but may not govern--shall enthral but not enslave him. And She knows, because She warns him, and Her instincts never fail, That the Female of Her Species is more deadly than the Male.
If you think that evolution is what has caused different approaches to career selection and emotional state, you've been living with blinders. And if the other guy geeks on this board agree with you it's no wonder they keep complaining about needing a date.
As a girl, from the time I was old enough to know the difference I was treated different from boys. I was given different chores, different toys, different clothes... I was repremanded for getting dirty and told to that "good little girls" sat quietly, spoke softly and politely. My brothers, on the other hand, were encouraged to be aggressive and "take things apart" because they were boys.
Just in case you think my parents were the only influence of this type... I have been told by countless teachers, counselors, and college department heads (the cs department no less) that my interest in computers was misplaced because it was "no place for a woman". All this inspite of the fact that I graduated in the top 10% of my class, have been programming since I was 12 (on an old tandy that hooked to a tv), and continue to rank first in almost every programming class I take which are made up of 99% men.
The only reason I have managed to stick with it inspite of all the discouragement is that everytime I sit down infront of this damn thing I remember how much I love it.
And as for the different approaches to emotions/analytical thought that you claim are "evolutionary". Try to remember when you were 5... you and your sister both fall down, your mother wraps your little sister in her arms and comforts her with soft words and tells her how cruel the world can be...your father tells you to buck up...boys don't cry.
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When the Himalayan peasant meets the he-bear in his pride,
He shouts to scare the monster, who will often turn aside.
But the she-bear thus accosted rends the peasant tooth and nail.
For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.
When Nag the basking cobra hears the careless foot of man,
He will sometimes wriggle sideways and avoid it if he can.
But his mate makes no such motion where she camps beside the trail.
For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.
They prayed to be delivered from the vengence of the squaws.
'Twas the women, not the warriors, turned those stark enthusiasts pale.
For the female of the species is more deadly than the male.
Whith his fellow-braves in council, dare not leave a place for her
Where, at war with Life and Conscience, he uplifts his erring hands
To some God of Abstract Justice--which no woman understands.
And Man knows it! Knows, moreover, that the Woman that God gave him
Must command but may not govern--shall enthral but not enslave him.
And She knows, because She warns him, and Her instincts never fail,
That the Female of Her Species is more deadly than the Male.
- Rudyard Kipling, 1911
If you think that evolution is what has caused different approaches to career selection and emotional state, you've been living with blinders. And if the other guy geeks on this board agree with you it's no wonder they keep complaining about needing a date.
As a girl, from the time I was old enough to know the difference I was treated different from boys. I was given different chores, different toys, different clothes... I was repremanded for getting dirty and told to that "good little girls" sat quietly, spoke softly and politely. My brothers, on the other hand, were encouraged to be aggressive and "take things apart" because they were boys.
Just in case you think my parents were the only influence of this type... I have been told by countless teachers, counselors, and college department heads (the cs department no less) that my interest in computers was misplaced because it was "no place for a woman". All this inspite of the fact that I graduated in the top 10% of my class, have been programming since I was 12 (on an old tandy that hooked to a tv), and continue to rank first in almost every programming class I take which are made up of 99% men.
The only reason I have managed to stick with it inspite of all the discouragement is that everytime I sit down infront of this damn thing I remember how much I love it.
And as for the different approaches to emotions/analytical thought that you claim are "evolutionary". Try to remember when you were 5... you and your sister both fall down, your mother wraps your little sister in her arms and comforts her with soft words and tells her how cruel the world can be...your father tells you to buck up...boys don't cry.
Hey... I'm a girl and I like the man show...