Writers of feminist dystopian fiction are alert to the realities that grind down women's lives, that make the unthinkable suddenly thinkable.
Naomi AldermanRead
Competitive sports may be where exercise becomes 'fun' for children who are good at it, but for those who are less talented, it is where exercise becomes not only physically demanding but also emotionally painful and socially humiliating.
Interpretation
Sports can be enjoyable for talented children but may cause stress for those who struggle.
Naomi Alderman's quote highlights the dual nature of competitive sports among children. While those who excel find joy and fun in athletic endeavors, those who face challenges may encounter not just physical demands but also emotional distress and social humiliation, emphasizing the need for a more inclusive approach to sports and exercise that accommodates all skill levels.
In practice
This quote could be used in a discussion about youth sports programs at a community meeting.
Writers of feminist dystopian fiction are alert to the realities that grind down women's lives, that make the unthinkable suddenly thinkable.
When a marriage founders, this may well be cause for tremendous sadness, but it's not a failure of spirit or character. People change, their goals and dreams alter, their ideas of themselves grow, or they just meet someone they like better.
The demands of having to be 'masculine' are as damaging to men as the demands of having to be 'feminine' are to women. I wish we could all agree just to wash it all away. Begin again.
One of the hardest challenges posed by the modern world is how to deal with abundance. It's even harder to confront because admitting that it's a problem seems spoiled.
I hope that there are many more women out there writing bits of feminist sci-fi. And men, also - men are allowed to write feminist things.
The arts are valuable because they increase our sense of what it means to be human, not because of any specific skill or ability they confer.
My mother helped me understand how not to show off what I knew, but how to use it so that others might benefit.
From a child I was fond of reading, and all the little money that came into my hands was ever laid out in books. Pleased with the 'Pilgrim's Progress,' my first collection was of John Bunyan's works in separate little volumes.
The imagination is an innate gift, but it needs refinement and cultivation; this is what the humanities provide.
Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it.
Colleges and universities, for all the benefits they bring, accomplish far less for their students than they should. Many students graduate without being able to write well enough to satisfy their employers... reason clearly or perform competently in analyzing complex, non-technical problems.
In the field of higher ed, many have asked whether (or when) digital education will replace on-campus education. I wonder the opposite. Cinema never replaced theatre. TV didn't replace radio. I wonder how different digital education will be from classrooms, and where it will lead us.
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