Community Chat

[Lila Belle]

On 9/20/2014 Marienkaefer2 said: I think people are taking "well behaved" too literally. It's a play on words. It's referring to the fact that women who "disobeyed" societal rules made great strides toward breaking the glass ceiling. Of course its context is historical. But then you have to ask yourself, have we broken that glass ceiling? Or just made some large cracks?

Your take is correct.

As long as men are in the majority in government we will only be chipping away at that ceiling. Just look at all the legislation concerning women that they've blocked or refused to pass over the last few years, such as violence against women and equal pay.

[ical]

On 9/20/2014 kittymomNC said:

On 9/20/2014 ical said:

On 9/19/2014 kittymomNC said: <p class="MsoNormal"> <p class="MsoNormal">I was curious to see what other people take from that statement. I started to say other "women", but then I remembered that we have some gentlemen here, too! All thoughts are welcome!

Think history. Think status quo. Now rethink the phrase on the bumper sticker.

I have been thinking about all the very intelligent posts on this thread, which is why I posted this. There have been so many varying thoughts, opinions, lots of information to absorb from some very smart women...it's been enlightening. Would you care to embellish on your thoughts as others have done?

This is the bumper sticker being discussed: "Well-behaved women seldom make history."

I'll use this one example (although there are many (many!) from which to choose:

In the 16th century, for example, a device was introduced to quiet women, to shut them up, make them silent, keep them hushed, humiliate them, torture them, keep them "in line" so they would become "well-behaved women".*

This device was called a brank or "Scold's bridle". I was going to place images of this device used to make women "well-behaved"…but anyone can search it, read the history…and probably (amazingly so), learn for the first time that such things were used…as late as the 19th century--and, horrifyingly so, even currently (2014!)--it is becoming a sick trend, through the influence of bondage-themed best sellers (which are taking women backwards--and some women are falling for it (literally with their bodies, not realizing (or do they?) they are also falling their minds (perceived female intellect--as a whole)).

*Did any of those "well-behaved" women make history? No--they were silenced and trained to be silent.

[RainCityGirl]

I've seen that quote before and to me it means a variety of things, but ,mainly I see it as women in history doing things that are contrary to the established norm of the time, whether it is breaking into a career area that is predominately a male bastion to campaigning for voting rights, to running for office, to pushing for legislation for a pervasive violence against women law, to demanding health care coverage without special interest groups discounting certain reproductive health coverage. I think, though, that somewhat the same thing could be said about men, though they seem to have the advantage through history BECAUSE they are men. Exceptional men and women both make history. There are just more road blocks for women.

[BellaPaprika]

Just want to reiterate that no, Florence Nightingale never had children legitimate or otherwise. She had an uncle who did but I'm afraid someone misheard or was misinformed in nursing school if they heard otherwise. I've heard that over the years people made up crazy rumors about FN because in reality she was a very prudish Victorian and was very critical of the "social lapses" of her acquaintances. But it was a malicious joke, not truth.

[Marienkaefer2]

On 9/21/2014 RainCityGirl said:

I've seen that quote before and to me it means a variety of things, but ,mainly I see it as women in history doing things that are contrary to the established norm of the time, whether it is breaking into a career area that is predominately a male bastion to campaigning for voting rights, to running for office, to pushing for legislation for a pervasive violence against women law, to demanding health care coverage without special interest groups discounting certain reproductive health coverage. I think, though, that somewhat the same thing could be said about men, though they seem to have the advantage through history BECAUSE they are men. Exceptional men and women both make history. There are just more road blocks for women.

Thank you. I think you've explained it best.