A woman has to be twice as good as a man to go half as far.
Interpretation
The quote highlights the unequal standards women face in comparison to men in society.
Fannie Hurst's quote emphasizes the discriminatory challenges women encounter in professional and social spheres. It suggests that women often need to exert twice the effort and demonstrate superior skills to achieve equivalent success or recognition compared to their male counterparts, underscoring the systemic inequalities present in various aspects of life.
In practice
This quote is perfect for a discussion on gender equality in a workplace seminar.
Thou shalt not commit adultry is a command which makes no distinction between the following persons. They are all required to obey it: children at birth. Children in the cradle. School children. Youths and maidens. Fresh adults. Older ones. Men and women of 40. Of 50. Of 60. Of 70. Of 80. Of 100. The command does not distribute its burden equally, and cannot. It is not hard upon the three sets of children.
Part of me loves and respects men so desperately, and part of me thinks they are so embarrassingly incompetent at life and in love. You have to teach them the very basics of emotional literacy. You have to teach them how to be there for you, and part of me feels tender toward them and gentle, and part of me is so afraid of them, afraid of any more violation.
In all our contacts it is probably the sense of being really needed and wanted which gives us the greatest satisfaction and creates the most lasting bond.
My dear fellow, the truth isnβt quite the sort of thing one tells to a nice, sweet, refined girl. What extraordinary ideas you have about the way to behave to a woman!
If you aren't gonna say exactly how and what you feel, you might as well not say anything at all.
Many families remain for years in the same place, though both husband and wife are sick of it, simply because there is neither complete division nor agreement between them.
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