Mahima Sharma Week 1

In the article “The Egg and the Sperm”, Emily Martin analysis yields a lot of lessons; we think we know a lot because of science in this age, but the truth is, the way we decipher that science is sexist and this in fact actually makes us oblivious; such gender bias strengthens gender inequality and this is how the traditional misogyny continues to live now; we need to realize our mistakes and struggle to achieve a new insight with justice and we must make sure that we won’t pass the blunders to the upcoming generations. She breaks down the metaphors that are used to teach the biological concepts mentioned in the article and contends that these metaphors reflect the socially constructed definitions of male and female. She focuses on analogies made in fertilization with the roles that the egg and sperm play and points out that as female biological processes are inferior to male biological processes, must women be less worthy than men? It is argued that although gender is a socially constructed idea, it is often seen as a natural phenomenon. Society thus plays a key role in reinforcing gender roles in a way that disguises itself as natural and is thus accepted without question. A solution to these negative imageries is to be aware of the biased metaphors.