Most of our perceptions come from a common world of social practices and institutions so embedded in our shared reality of power, language, and identity that they are invisible to us. These shared perceptions, that is, these perceptions about which many people agree, are social constructions. Social constructions may seem to be reality, but what they truly are is a shared way of seeing something that some people have agreed upon. People who are not aware that they are determined by the specific cultural meanings, the social constructions, of their culture will not be free to be fully who they are. They will not be free to explore the many ways one can live and experience life.

So should one spend their life exploring the many ways (could take some time) one can live and experience life or should one follow their heart, assuming ones heart isn't chopped up into tiny little pieces all going in different directions.

And I think also it's recognizing what one has been taught and starting to challenge that. It's developing oneself intellectually.

I agree debbyski. We all too often accept the status quo without reflection on or study of the historical roots of the patriarchal system which has shaped societal gender roles and stereotypes which flood our media and have become rooted in our collective psyche.

I wish that feminist theory were required reading for everyone!

Sometimes I think we don't even recognize subtle sexism and how we are affected by it! It is a simple fact that maleness still carries more power than femaleness in our society, so I think that they are many ways women are socialized into behaviors and roles that do not support their growth and development as unique individuals, but instead keep them dependent on the approval of others

Change is a coming, but it's still slow..