Throwing Like A Girl Analysis

Dr. Ortega

PL 385-52

14 April 2016

Conditioned From a Young Age

The issue of "throwing like a girl" is one that still exists in our society today even though it is considered to be progressive. From a very young age girls are taught that they can only throw like a girl and that this throw is somehow weaker than a boys of the same age. Iris Young develops this idea in her article entitled "Throwing Like a Girl." She does this by describing the ways in which women often restrict their movements in everyday life and also, through the patriarchal idea that women are viewed as objects. Throughout this paper I will speak about these two topics in relation to modern day girls and how they are conditioned to restrict their movements and to view themselves

as objects, starting at a very young age.
Young develops her ideas about "throwing like a girl" not only in the sports sense but also in everyday physical activities, such as, walking and sitting. She states that, "women generally are not as open with their bodies as are men in their gait and stride" (Young 262). This example could be linked directly to the fact that women are generally considered to be more reserved and controlled with their body movements. Longer strides when walking or running are generally seen as relating more to men, so in order to keep the feminine appearance women need to restrict themselves. The feminine appearance is taught to children at a young age as a basic outline of what girls should do and what boys should not do. Additionally, when carrying things, "girls and women most often carry books embraced to their chests, while boys and men swing them along their sides" (Young 262). Even with the simple act of carrying something women restrict themselves and their movements because they have been taught to minimize the space they take up.
The idea that women view themselves as objects is heavily present in society and will likely not dissipate for quite some time. Everything a woman does in this world is related more to her body than to her mind, so her thoughts are often disregarded completely. That being said, "the source of this is that the patriarchal society defines women as object, as a mere body, and that in sexist society women are in fact frequently regarded by others as objects and mere bodies" (Young 270). When a woman is more highly valued for the way her body looks, behaves, and is presented in the world than for her intellect then there is a problem. In our society that is and remains consistently patriarchal and sexist, women are less valuable unless they are "hot" or "sexy." Then the women become an object of the male gaze instead of a being-in-the-world, as stated by Merleau-Ponty. When women see themselves through the patriarchy and different forms of sexism, they only see an object, something that exists for the sole purpose of pleasing others.
As girls grow into women they have had the idea reinforced in their heads that they should restrict or minimize themselves and take up as little space as physically possible. These ideas "produce in many women a greater or lesser feeling of incapacity, frustration, and self-consciousness" (Young 264). The societal norm for girls is that they should shrink themselves down and almost be invisible. A girl making noise or standing out is deviating from society’s teachings. Engaging in physical activities, like baseball, is seen as a male hobby or interest, and for this reason, girls are less likely to participate because they feel they are unwanted. Society teaches girls that they should walk, talk, and behave in the ways that make them seem meek and dainty. A girl should walk quietly and quickly, she should speak softly and use flowery language, she should behave like the perfect docile person, with no questions asked. The people who attempt to stand up to these very stereotypical ideals of what girls and women should be are labeled as radical feminists and belittled. Society does not like change and by continuing to use the idea of "throwing like a girl" it places girls and women in a box that holds them back from their full potential.
With these ideas in mind, it is not a question as to why women consider themselves to be objects.

When girls are told that they need to work towards certain standards and ideals entirely created by society, then they can only see themselves as an object following orders. This type of patriarchal and sexist objectification "keeps [women] in [there] place" and limits women's potential as productive beings (Young 271). There is a massive double-bind in our society which tells women to be quiet and to restrict the space they take up, but in the same token also requires them to be sexy and flirtatious. The ideas women have about their bodies always come back to societal expectations and how others view them because there is always the "possibility that one will be gazed upon as a mere body, as shape and flesh that presents itself" (Young 270). It is hard to break the cycle of seeing oneself as an object in world where that is what is explicitly

taught.
Young makes some incredible points about the ways in which girls and women conduct themselves in society under the patriarchal and sexist eye.

I do agree that women are told to reduce the space they take up in the world which is what they are conditioned to do almost from birth. If a women takes up more space than she needs then she is considered to be a burden. If a man takes up more space than he needs then he is seen under the clichéd phrase "boys will be boys." There is a double-standard when it comes to how women and men take up space. One specific example is the new term man-spreading, where a man takes up more space then he needs on different forms of public transportation as well as in restaurants and bars. He will sit back and extend his legs as wide as he possibly can in order to make himself more comfortable. If a woman acted the same way she would be considered "unladylike." This ladylike attitude is a conditioned thing because girls are taught to cross their legs and minimize their space. A specific example from my grade school was an etiquette class we were forced to take where we had to cross our legs for hours at a time in order to learn how to be ladylike. Sitting with our legs apart caused the teachers to yell at the girls saying "what do you want to be a boy?." That being said, it is up to the women to accommodate the men in public situations by taking up the space that they are given and nothing

more.
On the topic of women as objects in society, I can also agree with Young on her stance. Some women wake up every morning and put on a full face of makeup in order to please those around them. While having a full face of makeup is not a bad thing, it becomes about objectivity if it is only done for others and not for the happiness of the wearer. Additionally, this objectification has been a gendered issue for women for such a long time. When it comes to magazine ads, television commercials, and even some TV shows women are seen as the arm-pieces for men. When "women of color... LGBTQ characters and white female characters [are being] killed off left and right," they can be seen as only objects on TV (Maureen Ryan). When women are killed to enhance this new idea of "man-pain" on television shows then women are seen as objects. Taking up space and existing in this world should not mean that women are objects simply present for men's desires.
There are some spectacular points made in Iris Young's piece, both in relation to how women are taught to restrict themselves and how they see themselves as objects. In a perfect world these issues would not even exist. In our present world however, these are issues that need to be faced head on by women and men everywhere. It is time that women attempt to break this conditioned cycle and move towards a positive future, one that is not focused on objectification and the belittling of women.

Works Cited
Ryan, Maureen. "‘Anyone Can Die?’ TV’s Recent Death Toll Says Otherwise." Variety.com. Variety, 13 Apr. 2016. Web. 13 Apr. 2016. .
Young, Iris. "Throwing Like a Girl." Body and Flesh: A Philosophical Reader. Ed. Donn Welton. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 1998. 259-72. Print.