Check out 16 Return-To-Work Programs In India For Ambitious Women Like You!
Seeds of misogyny are sown in our kids right from the beginning, aided by the sexism in children's stories. Is this fair in this day and age?
Seeds of misogyny are sown in our kids right from the beginning, aided by the sexism in children’s stories. Is this fair in this day and age?
I am a content writer who edits and creates content for school children. I was editing this passage which someone had written for a Grade 4 class.
This king felt every story everyone told him had a short ending. To satisfy himself, he placed a challenge where he declared that if anyone could tell him a really long story, that person would marry his daughter and become a king.
Usually I would shrug it off and read. But today I paused.
I was shocked. How mean is this king to ignore the wishes of his daughter? Does he not love his daughter or care for her? What if the man who told the never ending story was mean and cruel to the king’s daughter? What if he tortured the king’s daughter? What if their interests were totally opposite? To satisfy oneself, the king was placing his daughter’s life in jeopardy. What if the person who told the story was a woman? And the princess was heterosexual? Are we already assuming here that women cannot tell good stories that will please the king?
Perhaps they should read Women’s Web (a space which encouraged the writer in me) to understand and comprehend that women can be stronger critical thinkers, and far better story tellers than men.
It may be a simple story for kids, but it is time we stopped reading such stories. It is wrong to inculcate such wrong beliefs in our kids from such a young age. We should always encourage critical thinking in our children. Our daughters should never be forced into marrying someone they don’t like. These children’s stories later insert the fear of marriages in our daughters.
This story is a simple instance of where we should question ourselves about what we are teaching our kids. Everything we say or do is an example of how we want our kids to behave or think. Let us rise up and put a stop to such foolish and degrading stories. Anyone who can tell the king a never ending story should be given a suitable reward, not ‘handed’ the princess!
Image source: YouTube
I love to write on women's issues. I strongly believe that every woman is capable of being more than just a homemaker. They are the leaders of our world. They can multi-task more read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
Please enter your email address