Apparently generalizing women is precisely how best to understand them. This Valentine\u2019s Day, take a stand, it\u2019s about time you did!<\/p>\n
Self-help books have undoubtedly given many readers an insight into the human psyche and transformed many lives.\u00a0 They have also been the subject of immense scrutiny. The most popular ones in this category, after the Chicken Soup<\/em> series, are those that help each gender understand the other. I\u2019ve read a few, and I find it very difficult to agree with a lot of what is posited in the pages of these life-changing books.<\/p>\n One thing that irks me is the simple codification used to figure women out. It\u2019s as easy an antonym \u2013 she says no, she means yes. Making women look like the most uni-dimensional things since stick drawings! Don\u2019t get me wrong, I don\u2019t think there is anything wrong with self-help books or generalizations, but it bothers me when the whole thing is validated by popular culture.<\/p>\n Take the Valentine\u2019s Day code, for instance. In this code, it is hypothesized that women who claim to be anti-Valentine\u2019s Day actually crave the attention and romance and mush. Well, let me just say that is once again reducing a woman to some form of binary-coded automaton who cannot think beyond a yes or no.<\/p>\n It might seem like I\u2019m harping on the same point, but let\u2019s look at this a little more seriously than we normally do. Thanks to these \u201cThis is what women actually<\/em> mean\u201d memes, we\u2019re left with no option but to cry ourselves hoarse refuting these claims. Only to realize that some genius is pointing fingers at us and telling his genius friends \u2013 \u201cI told you so\u201d.<\/p>\n Personally, there have been maybe two Valentine\u2019s Days when I\u2019ve had dates. I was wooed in one and left fuming in the other! My favorite Valentine\u2019s Day, however, was in 2010. A group of friends and I had gone out for the just-released film Valentine\u2019s Day (we had free tickets).\u00a0 We then went shopping and headed over to our favorite hangout for a drink and lunch. We had the best time!<\/p>\n We didn\u2019t need a date to make ourselves feel better. We were happy exactly where we were and we didn\u2019t need validation in the form of a date. Most importantly, we didn\u2019t want to go out on a date and we actually meant that.<\/p>\n It\u2019s about time women actively disliked being generalized. If we have the emotional wisdom to be maternal, career-oriented, and filial all together, chances are that we are more than just people who say no when we secretly mean yes.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Image courtesy of myklroventine<\/a> via\u00a0Creative Commons<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Editor’s note:<\/p>\n If you think being single is a an ordeal, read: Indian Girl: Still Single and Spirited<\/a>. \u00a0Or, if you are contemplating being in a relationship, read: How To Find Someone To Date<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n