While there’s no doubt that I much prefer words to pictures (this blog serves as evidence for Exhibit-with-a-capital-A), sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. Or more. (Though the first one is a cheat…)
In any case, the first screen shot summarizes exactly why admire Zoe Saldana so much. It’s more than just fashion, beauty and style and all other superficial things for both this blog and myself. At the risk of sounding hypocritical I’ll be the first to admit that those are things I enjoy, but at the end of the day, no matter the memories or emotions associated with them, are just things.
But back to the talented Zoe Saldana.
“A woman can preach, a woman can work, a woman can fight, a woman can build, can rule, can conquer, can destroy, just as a man can.”
Binary gender systems are limiting. Ignorant. It’s all human to me.
. . .
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Although to be fair, the golden gate bridge (which I believe is the one you showed) was built exclusively by men because men biologically are much stronger and women don’t tend to be strong enough to be builders.
Binary gender systems are very obvious. Women are less able to do physical tasks as they are much weaker, especially with upper body strength. Unless women take male hormones, steroids, they don’t tend to have much muscle mass.
While I’m a firm believer in being open-minded and that every individual’s beliefs are their own, I can’t help but feel the itch to respond to this.
Sure, there’s a good amount of men who are physically stronger than women – but biologically speaking would be a sweeping generalization. There are plenty of women whose physical strength is incredible. Take weight-lifters. Swimmers. Athletes. All these women are trained to be so incredibly powerful.
Do remember that its patriarchy and centuries of reinforcing these gender binaries and “societal norms” that have men and women where we are today – it plays a huge factor in how we “should” look and what we should do.
I must also add that gender binaries aren’t just limited to the physical. It extends to and is more about the personality traits society has assigned to be “masculine” and “feminine.” Men are hard, stubborn, rational. Women are soft, emotional, dependent. “Rational” isn’t male or female, nor is any other characteristic. It’s all personality and depends on the individual. Not the gender.
“While I’m a firm believer in being open-minded and that every individual’s beliefs are their own, I can’t help but feel the itch to respond to this.”
I affirm your open mindedness, and your itch to respond to it i affirm too as another sign of freedom of speech, and see it as no impediment to my beliefs.
“Sure, there’s a good amount of men who are physically stronger than women – but biologically speaking would be a sweeping generalization. There are plenty of women whose physical strength is incredible. Take weight-lifters. Swimmers. Athletes. All these women are trained to be so incredibly powerful.”
Their physical strength tends to be at or slightly above the average man. I am in the gym a lot. Male newbies can more often than not overpower them in arm wrestles. You can certainly test this yourself at a gym.
There are enough strong women, who are stronger than men, to be in the olympics.
There aren’t enough strong women around to build bridges. Men are necessary. As a practical matter, I doubt any woman you know personally is strong enough to defeat any similarly aged man in an arm wrestle.
“Do remember that its patriarchy and centuries of reinforcing these gender binaries and “societal norms” that have men and women where we are today – it plays a huge factor in how we “should” look and what we should do.”
Not really, you just can’t grow big muscles without the hormone that makes big muscles. And men are innately bigger and so have more muscle mass. No amount of societal norms is going to change how testosterone works on muscle cells.
“I must also add that gender binaries aren’t just limited to the physical. It extends to and is more about the personality traits society has assigned to be “masculine” and “feminine.” Men are hard, stubborn, rational. Women are soft, emotional, dependent. “Rational” isn’t male or female, nor is any other characteristic. It’s all personality and depends on the individual. Not the gender.”
I agree, those aren’t valid differences and vary from person to person.
I’m glad you don’t take my comments the wrong way!
I get the whole physical strength argument, I do. However, physical strength is not the only thing that strength means: strength can be physical. Strength can be emotional. Mental. Physical strength does not mean that one sex is more superior than another (but in that token, no attribute or trait can make one sex or one individual more “superior” than another.”