Puberty in the Girl

"Puberty in the Girl" - 1902

- Everyone is pretty much equal as a child up until puberty

o Boy becomes more independent, exercises

o Girl becomes a maiden, timid

o She is placed under circumstances that hinder her "blood-making" or child rearing powers.

 These circumstances are trying to learn such things in school as science, math, politics, etc.

 Learning these things makes a women less vigorous, and less able to perform her dutiesÐ'--bearing children, being a mother/wife

 Biggest thing a woman owes to society is the fact that she can reproduce

- Says that women are superior to men because of the fact that they endure pain and suffering more, and because she is a man's "better half"

- Basically says women cannot escape this lifeÐ'--compares it to the planets

- Says that doctors should be warning pubescent girls about what is out there, like exercising, education, etc, because it threatens pretty much the only thing that women should be on Earth for.

- This will make her a cultured, sweet, and lovely mother.

Things I liked:

- Sort of brought my attention to the fact that when a woman says she wants to devote herself to her career and not have children, most people immediately react in shock, like that woman is being very selfish.

- The fact that I think most people can read this and be in shock, disagreeing with almost all of it, shows the progress we've made today at least.

Things I didn't like:

- Basically didn't agree with anything

- He's basically hindering any women's movement, basically exemplifying why women struggle to become equals in society

- Very chauvinistic

Why we are reading it:

- To perhaps get an overview of how a woman's transition into puberty was viewed by a male doctor in the early 20th century. Which is basically ignoring the situation and warning girls not to do anything too strenuous and just make sure they are ok to have babies in the future.

"A Girl's Story"

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