Yikes! Too bad there's so much racism buried in the plucky girl stories of our foremothers. (Or not buried. It would be nice if they had the grace to be ashamed of some of this garbage.)
Or should we be thinking that if he's the same height and build as Billie, who surely also has a wrench about her person, why is Billie so down on herself and her ability to fight? It comes off like a badly done attempt to girly Billie up a little after saying what a great, confident driver she was.
Just based on your description, I read it as showing Billie as nonviolent, rather than incompetent. A good girl can be strong and brave, she can fix machines and make good plans, she can be admired for being clever and loyal rather than only for being kind or beautiful...but she must NEVER QUARREL. A girl loses her good girl status right quick if she's at all aggressive. (I think this is related to the military regulations of many countries where women served in support roles but were formally forbidden from "combat" jobs.)
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Date: 2009-06-03 12:00 am (UTC)Or should we be thinking that if he's the same height and build as Billie, who surely also has a wrench about her person, why is Billie so down on herself and her ability to fight? It comes off like a badly done attempt to girly Billie up a little after saying what a great, confident driver she was.
Just based on your description, I read it as showing Billie as nonviolent, rather than incompetent. A good girl can be strong and brave, she can fix machines and make good plans, she can be admired for being clever and loyal rather than only for being kind or beautiful...but she must NEVER QUARREL. A girl loses her good girl status right quick if she's at all aggressive. (I think this is related to the military regulations of many countries where women served in support roles but were formally forbidden from "combat" jobs.)