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From: welsch@houxu.UUCP (Larry Welsch)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Ramblings on Space
Message-ID: <295@houxu.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 22-Jan-84 11:07:06 EST
Article-I.D.: houxu.295
Posted: Sun Jan 22 11:07:06 1984
Date-Received: Mon, 23-Jan-84 04:53:50 EST
Organization: Bell Labs, Holmdel NJ
Lines: 49

(to that eater of first lines)
Sophie Quigley has brought up some very interesting issues with regards to
space, and "woman-space." When I was first getting started in the world of
work, I shared a house with a bunch of guys. One of my house mates who I
liked a lot and I were in the same group and shared a closet the company
we worked for called an office. We couldn't lean back without touching
chairs with each other. In many ways we saw more of each other than if we
were married. Eventually we convinced our management on separate offices.
We are still good friends, but we found living and working together a
violation of our space constraints.

Next, I'd like to talk about sex and space.  In some respects every woman
is a potential sexual partner for every man and every man is a sexual
partner for every woman.  When the two are mixed there is an inevitable
sexual tension.  This is particularly true when people are discovering
their sexuality, from birth to 25, with variations depending on
individuals.  By sexual tension I mean, the gee your cute lets get it on
syndrome.  Now, this limits almost immediately how close people can get.

Let me give an example, when I taught I dealt with many students, some
male some female.  I sometimes went down to the pub and had a beer with
some of my students.  I never had or suggested having a beer with a lone
female student, though, I did have beers with lone male students.  Why,
well a lone female student would provide a potential invasion of the "gee
lets get it on together" space that I didn't want invaded by a student.
Yet in another way my actions were discrimination.  I allowed male
students to be more socially close to me than female students.  

The same unspoken rule held when I was a graduate student. I never had a
beer with a lone female peer in the same department with me, and holds to
a lesser extent in the work environment. I never invite lone female
colleagues in my Laboratory home for dinner or lunch, while I frequently
invite lone male colleagues home.  Why?  No confusion on intention.  I
suspect that people are so frightened of homosexuality and their own
homosexuality cause it introduces a confusion of intent into a
relationship.

I see this as directly related to Sophie's description of a need of woman
space.  In an environment where there were only women, there was no
confusion of intent.  With a nearly equal environment, there were always
enough women around where she could have friends without the issue of
a potential sexual relationship.  However, in a mostly male environment
she is always faced with that issue. 


						Larry Welsch
						houxu!welsch