Anthropology of an American Girl: A Novel by Hilary Thayer Hamann
"Boys will be boys, that's what people say. No one ever mentions how girls have to be something other than themselves altogether. We are to stifle the same feelings that boys are encouraged to display. We are to use gossip as a means of policing ourselves -- this way those who do succumb to sex but are not damaged by it are damaged instead by peer malice. Girls demand a covenant because if one gives in, others will be expected to do the same. We are to remain united in cruelty, ignorance, and aversion. Or we are to starve the flesh from our bones, penalizing the body for its nature, castigating ourselves for advances we are powerless to prevent. We are to make false promises then resist the attentions solicited. Basically we are to become expert liars."
"Lying is a full time occupation, even if you tell just one, because once you tell it, you're stuck with it. If you want to do it right, you have to visualize it, conjure the graphics, tone, and sequence of action, then relate it purposefully in the midst of seemingly spontaneous dialogue. The more actual the lie becomes to the listener, the more actual it becomes to the teller, which is scariest of all. Some people really get to believing their own lies."
"Having to talk to people was one thing, but soliciting conversation was something else entirely. If I acted squirmy or didn't make eye contact, they would want to know what was wrong, and I would have to say "nothing," since nothing really was wrong. Nothing is an easy thing to feel but a difficult thing to express. It's impossible to describe nothing without seeming sneaky."
If those quotes aren't convincing enough, you should read the rest of the book. Beautifully written, it pours out exquisite truths about the life of contemporary females.
Song of the day: "All We Want Baby Is Everything" Handsome Furs
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