Check out 16 Return-To-Work Programs In India For Ambitious Women Like You!
Who are the good girls? What are the many challenges they face for being good in this society. This poem says it all.
Who are the good girls? What are the many challenges they face for being considered ‘good’ in this society? This poem says it all.
Be a ‘good girl’ is all she had heard-
It made sense, good is a virtuous word
She did not know that being good came
With strings attached, all the same
The parameters of being good had much to do
With her gender, though she lacked a clue
For in her naive world-view good was defined
By honesty, industry and purity of mind
Regardless of gender, these qualities were universal-
But,
She was not expected merely to be good, but a ‘good girl’
This juxtaposition of words implied so much more
Weighty expectations that she had to endure
**
Good girls should be seen, but not really heard
No uproarious laughter, no loud word
Should escape their mouths, she was told
They should step daintily, not have a stride bold..
Back off quickly in intellectual discourse
Never state their opinions with much force
(Mind you, these rules were for girls who were given
Similar to male counterparts, a liberal education)
Obeying your elders good upbringing signified
So she suppressed her rebellious streak and complied
Though in front of these rules she could not resign
Herself completely, may be she just was not destined
To be the “good girl” who would in due course transform
Into a well-mannered lady with old-fashioned charm.
Raised in a family with ideas fairly modern
Where education was not a subject of discrimination
She eventually ended up highly qualified
In a male-dominated field, which she entered with pride
Though confident in her abilities, she quickly realized
Behaving in her ‘good girl’ ways would be ill-advised-
She would change her walk to a long, confident stride
Speak clearly and loudly, be assertive; she did decide
It was not easy to break the stereotype in which she
Had been typecast for so long, she thought bitterly
At every step she heard her conditioning chide
Her for not being a good girl, letting her manners slide.
Progress was slow but she managed to
Keep her head high in her workplace too
Stereotyping was dangerous- she had learnt
She resolved never again to get burnt.
Previously published here.
Image source Unsplash
I am a woman, a physician, a mother and an aspiring writer rolled into one. I write about various aspects of my life, and my preferred form of writing is poetry (or rhyming verses). 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