History of Feminism

Last edited Sun Feb 22, 2015, 10:04 PM - Edit history (1)

It's been my observation that women in positions of authority often have to come across as more severe or critical of others in order to maintain that authority. They don't have the leeway to be as relaxed or "hilarious" as a male teacher might be, because they'd risk not being taken seriously.

This is something I recall even from high school. It was an all girls' school -- and yet the female teachers tended to range from casually friendly to starchy, while the much smaller number of male teachers displayed far more showmanship and ebullience in the classroom.

I don't know what can be done about this, since it suggests to me that even women don't take other women seriously unless they pull rank in a way that isn't necessary for men. But it may go along with our tendency as a society to rate even presidential candidates on likeability rather than effectiveness.