Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 alpha 4/15/85; site amdcad.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!gatech!amdcad!linda From: linda@amdcad.UUCP (Linda Seltzer) Newsgroups: net.women Subject: Sunny's comments and opposition to assertive women Message-ID: <2683@amdcad.UUCP> Date: Fri, 16-Aug-85 12:35:55 EDT Article-I.D.: amdcad.2683 Posted: Fri Aug 16 12:35:55 1985 Date-Received: Mon, 19-Aug-85 08:35:44 EDT Organization: AMDCAD, Sunnyvale, CA Lines: 14 Keywords: Not uncommon response to non-deferential women I don't think that some of the inappropriately sarcastic and rejecting responses to Sunny's observations are necessarily due to Sunny's life experience. There are some men who are very hostile to any woman who presents herself in a self-assured, competent and non-deferential manner. Women are expected to speak with different (less self confident and assertive) speech patterns than men, and they are never supposed to engage in head-on intellectual debate with a man. I saw a woman lose a possible position at a large company because in a seminar she argued with a male speaker, saying "Frankly, that is not the case" rather than saying: "Don't you think that ... might be plausible?". As Sunny experiences more and more of womanhood I suspect that she will experience more and more of this phenomena from some individuals.