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WomenInThisBusiness 5 - 21 Apr 2010 - Main.JessicaCohen
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| | When we were discussing Cerriere's Answer today, I thought Jessica brought up an interesting point about how women sometimes worry that they come across as "too edgy" when they speak. (Jessica, please correct me if I didn't accurately understand what you were saying). A female friend of mine here has mentioned this very issue to me on a couple occasions. She claims that female students, more often than male students, have a tendency to ask questions instead of make statements, of if they make a statement to soften it with a qualification such as "I feel like...."
Coincidentally, an article posted today on CLS' homepage mentions this as well. Professor Carol Sanger was honored at The Columbia Law Women’s Association annual Myra Bradwell Dinner, and this is a small excerpt from her speech: | | | I was at a party once and a man (a lawyer), in some BS discussion about how people this year will struggle to find jobs (etc etc) told me that good-looking women will be "fine." Needless to say, he really pissed me off, and I felt like I'd come face to face with a reality that was pretty upsetting. So I wonder how much this comes into play - do women, knowingly or not, refrain from being aggressive because in doing so, they sacrifice some of the benefits of their femininity? Even if they could get away with being aggressive and respected, is acting "edgy"and confrontational something women avoid out of a belief that they'll be better off, instead, taking advantage of their looks and womanhood? It's disturbing, if true.
-- JessicaHallett - 21 Apr 2010 | |
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I really meant what I said yesterday - I'm glad it has been reopened on the wiki. I am guilty of including the qualifying "I'm not sure if this makes sense" in my comments very often. I'd like to think it's because I understand how complex issues presented in class are and because I am being sensitive of using my classmates' time (in a sense), but my gut tells me it's because I'm a woman.
Jessica, your retelling of a conversation between you and the lawyer made want to puke. Probably due to the fact that I've heard that sort of thing so many times.
Back to our conversation yesterday -- I would think that ten or twenty years ago a very successful female attorney would be afforded even more respect than she is now (i.e. because she MADE IT). Our law school class is split almost evenly between men and women. I think the sheer number of women in the profession may make these issues even more difficult, in the sense that there are more women out there with whom to be compared. (eh?)
-- JessicaCohen - 21 Apr 2010 | | | |
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