Wednesday, December 15, 2010

The Nature of Women

One of the primary reasons why the men at the Royal Academy of Sciences in Berlin reacted so obstinately against my wishes to work with them is because of the general mentality concerning women in contemporary society. Women are considered to be inherently base and inferior to men in our society. There is a stereotype of women as uneducated, "sexually insatiable", inferior, and emotional; thus, these qualities deem us, women, incapable and incompetent to contribute to society in any significant manner.

It is quite funny how this mentality is being perpetuated by modern "science." Many scientists contend that women have smaller brains than men, and this is only because the accepted anatomical drawings (predominantly drawn by Vesalius) of our day  have illustrated men in a particular, arbitrary fashion, that is unfounded upon real, scientific evidence. Furthermore, due to the illustrations of larger pelvic areas, analysts of these drawings reaffirm their belief that the only purpose of women is childbearing. With smaller brains and larger pelvic areas in illustrative form, these representations influence contemporary mentality; thus, women are assumed to be senseless creatures solely created with the purpose of propagating the human species.

Vesalius presents a dichotomy between the anatomy of the two sexes (based on his arbitrary conceptions) in his illustrations,
below is such an example of his drawings:



While one would assume that progressive scientific thinking would correlate to progressive thinking in terms of gender and stereotypes, on the contrary, modern science is perpetuating these traditional ideas about women and gender roles.

2 comments:

  1. To my dear Maria,
    I completely agree Maria ! I'm glad to notice to you too have seen the injustice we women are given from men ! And yes, it is so very disappointing to know that progressive scientific thinking is actually making out society more stereotyped. Although, out bodies and body structures are just not the same in size of men doesn't mean we are not capable of their abilities, am I not right ? As I have told Margaret Cavendish, do not worry my dear Maria. We women, will continue to create our path in the scientific studies, and one day, we will be respected just as men are for our accomplishments.
    -Your compassionate friend,
    Maria Merian

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  2. EXACTLY! Men and their dumb beliefs that are not even accurate most of the times. You are a source of inspiration for me, as I now know that women have been fighting for equality long before I started. It is remarkable to see how men feel superior even though they make blank statements based on incorrect findings. Hopefully in the future, another scientist will expand on the knowledge of human anatomy and prove that women are men are equal and that women are not just baby mamas.

    Thanks for the inspiration!
    Marie-Olympe de Gouges

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