Summary

The author explains that “socialization exaggerates the [biological] differences” (35) between males and females, which initiates a “self-fulfilling prophesy” (35). The author finds examples of this socialization in mundane moments, like the mother who does the same job as her husband yet thanks him for changing a diaper and the parents who tell their equally brilliant daughter to stop doing homework and cook Indomie noodles for her brother who is hungry.

The author notes that she is not immune from socialization either. She shares an anecdote of her first day as a writing instructor, when she opted for a “very serious, very manly, and very ugly suit” (38) rather than “shiny lip gloss and [her] girly skirt” (38). The author recognizes that she did so because, as a female, she felt the need to “prove [her] worth” (38) according to standards that take men as their norm. The...