Being a Woman in a Man’s World
“All you have to do, I tell myself, is keep your mouth shut and look stupid. It shouldn’t be that hard” — The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
Being women within a ‘forward thinking society’ we weave a fine life of lies; lies we tell ourselves to get through the grind of each day.
We work jobs, created and structured for men.
We fill roles and earn incomes, emulating the role of another and not defining them for ourselves. We do not call out because we are grateful for what we have, when we compare it to what we did not have, but it does silence the cries from within.
We do too much to prove our worth.
We grind ourselves into a fine powder and desperately try to disperse ourselves into every cranny of our lives. If we do not meet the infinite expectations, perhaps this too will all be taken away.
We smile, look sexy, speak smartly, act demurely, work hard, and nurture others.
We workout our bodies, so that they appease the eyes of the men we surround ourselves with. We starve our bodies to fit the ideals society has concretized for us. We starve our minds by filling our days with work, babies, husbands and silent expectations, which weigh us down. They eventually weigh us down so greatly, that we accept defeat with a smile.
We say this is a life we want, and challenge and shame other women who try to defy us.
We fight amongst each other; wasting all of our energy bringing each other down and ignoring the real source of such a suppressant sadness in our lives.
