From my hardly-contested assertion that women don’t take as much interest in politics as men do and to the hotly-contested Havard President Larry Summer’s assertion that women aren’t as able in math and sciences as men, Mathew Yglesias (cites Warren

Divya, we were talking about more than physical differences…some things that women intrinsically enjoy more than men and vice versa e.g. fashion, shopping, personal thought-sharing, etc. But that doesn’t mean that men don’t do it at all. The stereotypes may change over the years..always has.

Ash, you certainly seem to enjoy your time in the blogging community. It is always great to have more people on board especially those with reasonable opinions and an open mind.

Girls, lage raho :)

As for the issue of women terrorists, I think its already been addressed. The ‘characteristic’ of being ‘gentle’ has long been ascribed to women, and is probably becuse of the role women assumed in society so far. But thats changing, and so is the attitude of the fairer sex. We’re no longer gentle; in fact, I think we can getty pretty damn fierce when we’re trying to establish credibility in a male-dominated society.

By the way, I’m new to the whole blogger community and I’ve only been posting for a couple of weeks, but I must say, I really enjoy sharing my thoughts and arguing for my opinions.

And hey Patrix, I think the exchange between Divya and me should clear up any doubt you had about women not wanting to get into murky issues…

Ash- I understand there are physical differences in men and women. But when men can become women and vice versa arent these distinguishing features blurring? I have seen many women who dress like men, who think like men. There were several women terrorists in the beslan siege? so wat does that say about the “characteristic” of being “gentle” of a women?

I am not sure of the brain patterns thing. But well I think the only aspects that might be differnt will the physique. But I think science will discover solutions for that too!

Divya, I hope you are satisfied although feel free to disagree (with arguments, of course)

I wasn’t trying to stereotype anybody. I think theres a distinct difference between sterotyping and making a generalisation, and the difference lies in the attitude. Its like saying dogs are friendly and lovable, while cats are proud and aloof - its a popular and quite accurate generalisation, yet anybody who’s had a dog or a cat knows that’s not always true.

I’m not ignoring uniqueness of an individual as a factor. The problem is that when you discuss an issue, you can only give your own individual viewpoint, and if you’re talking about the attitude of people/society, you can’t really take into consideration all the variations in personality. Hence you generalize …

And you’re absolutely right, I do agree that the definitions of a perfect man/woman are cultural and personal; and trying to fit in with that definition is why men and women tend to act in certain ways. And until those definitions change, male and female attitudes will not.

But here I will add, from the perspective of a biology student, that nature has made us in a certain way, and its a simple fact of life that men are not only physically different from women, but their inherent brain patterning is also different. Social conditioning does influence adult attitude, but there are inherent differences in the way men and women perceive the world.

And thats what makes life interesting after all.

Most humans play their parts to imitiate the “perfect man/woman” as close as possible. Of course this is not to say the defitions of such a being is identical among human beings. I think the definition is broadly cultural. And on a deeper layer very personal. Some of them refuse to get stereotyped and be as they are: these are your “exceptions” Ash.

Until our definitions of the “perfect man/woman” change men will try to be “macho” and women will be “demure”.

Wait for some upcoming posts on voting. All I need to hear from everyone is two bits and sometime we might just be able to make a difference somewhere.

And Divya, exceptions do exist, but I think its a pretty accurate generalization to say that there are certain guy things and certain girl things. Talking about personal stuff isn’t a guy thing and getting into heated political debates tends not to be a girl thing !

Personally, I would definitely put in my two bits during a political discusiion, but I really wouldn’t be interested in getting too involved and defending my position or attacking someone else’s. That doesnt mean I don’t care; I feel strongly about using my right to vote and being a part of the political process. But I guess guys just feel the need to prove their point more than girls do…

Queer - OK..since I don’t know what women do behind our backs, I will agree that women like to discuss politics like men like to gossip in secret.

Divya - Come on,, Divya you really don’t think there is such a thing like a guy thing or a girl thing?? people have built empires due to that difference.

I think its crap to say “men are like this” and “women are like that”. There is no generalization or stereotyping in here. I have seen several men who have vowed to never bother themselves with politics and several women who can not only talk politics but also indulge in it.

Minds Eye - surprisingly more men tend to blog about their personal feelings than women do on politics. They may not prefer to talk about it though :) I agree that men like to keep their personal stuff closer to them but then that is the fundamental man-woman difference..so does it boil down to this finally?

I’m not trying to explain why women refrain from politics, but posing another question… how many men discuss their personal feelings with other people/ blog about it?

Is it possible when men meet socially the conversation mostly revolves around general issues - politics, sports, business but women tend to talk about personal stuff? I’m just thinking aloud…

Passerby - I am not sure if it is the case of not knowing anything about but rather the problem of not wanting to express it..thatz what I am trying to understand…why?

Minds Eye - and men don’t get misunderstood..heck, we get more misunderstood than we like to but politics is not at all personal so the question of offending someone close does not arise..its merely makes the people around you aware of your beliefs and ideologies…do you prefer to keep it under wraps? Why?

I guess it’s not so much about having an opinion, I guess most women do… it’s more about voicing that opinion…. which fewer women do.

Generally, fewer women than men are politically inclined a lot of this having to do with the social structure and the traditional roles that women play (therefore having to be less concerned with the harsh realities of the world)

It’s therefore not surprising to see that women refrain from commenting on issues of socio-political and economic interest. That aside, I think Sabra’s insight explains some part of it. We have our views but refrain from talking about them. And when we do, we get misunderstood… case in point http://heretic.rediffblogs.com/2004_07_03_heretic_archive.html#1078910930