The Question | Teen Ink

The Question

January 25, 2010
By Lillybean BRONZE, Mclean, Virginia
Lillybean BRONZE, Mclean, Virginia
3 articles 0 photos 0 comments

When a child is born, everyone will ask “Is it a boy or a girl?” This simple question can determine the child’s entire future.
For years, men have been the only ones to gain any authority, hold office, vote, or perform other important duties. On a Hollywood movie screen, women have always played a background part, cooking dinner, washing clothes. The men are the ones who have the entire story centered on themselves. Of course, times are changing and women are becoming truly equivalent to men. But still, the stereotypical man is the strong, head of the house kind of guy. The woman has been known as the quiet housewife.
So why are men and women who they are? Is it how they are raised? Take the woman, on one hand. She grows up playing with dolls, wearing dresses and such. The man, on the other hand, plays with trucks, wears baseball caps, and everything in between. Girls are taught to be polite and elegant. They are taught how to fix their hair, clean the house, and cook dinner. Boys are taught be tough but intelligent. They learn how use a hammer, catch a football, and help their father. Now in today’s world, the girl might be taught how to use a hammer or catch a football. The boy might learn how to clean up or cook a meal. But typically the women spend their time in the house and the men in the garage or backyard.
Women tend to be emotional and a little dramatic. Men are usually the exact opposite. I’m not saying that men have no feelings whatsoever, but take this for example: When two people break up, the woman cries for days and trashes her ex on the phone with her girlfriends. She will then proceed to make a voodoo doll of the man and stab its head with sharp objects. The man is sad for a while then calls up his buddies and asks if they’ve seen any cute girls lately. Woman: Dramatic. Man: Not. Period. And if that’s not convincing enough: The woman’s favorite part of any movie is when two characters share a magical kiss at midnight. For a woman, this will bring a smile or even a tear to her face. If you hear hysterical laughter in the back of the theater during that scene, you can automatically assume it’s a guy.
Women are extremely talkative. Men for the most part, are monosyllabic. When a girl says “What’s up?” another girl, she will follow into a forty-five minute long story with enough words to fill a book. When a guy says “What’s up?” to another guy, I will guarantee all he will say is “Nothing.”
When two women get into an argument, both will spread lies, rumors, and any secret the other has ever told her. When asked five years later why the two never talk anymore, both will answer, “Well there was this one time in high school…” Women never forget. Men always forget. When two guys get into a fight, this usually leads to a couple scratches here, a bruise there, then suddenly they’re best friends again. When asked later about the argument both will answer, “Huh?”
I could go on and on but it would take literally forever to write all the similarities and differences between men and women. When I sat down to write this essay, there was one question in my mind. Why are men and women who they are? Why do girls like make-up and guys like football? The answer I have discovered is simply…just because. No one knows exactly why. I doubt anyone will ever be sure. But you can be certain, that although things will change, one question will remain the same. When a child is born, everyone will ask, “Is it a boy or a girl?”



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