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From: celeste@ssc-bee.UUCP (Celeste A Strahl)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: what makes you feel feminine/masculine VS normal.
Message-ID: <406@ssc-bee.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 22-Oct-85 17:14:32 EDT
Article-I.D.: ssc-bee.406
Posted: Tue Oct 22 17:14:32 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 24-Oct-85 07:47:37 EDT
References: <248@ssc-vax.UUCP> <1944@reed.UUCP> <32@ubc-cs.UUCP>
Organization: Boeing Aerospace Co., Seattle, WA
Lines: 45

When Ginger first posed this question, I too had a hard time spliting my
reactions into feminine and masculine categories.  I found some, which I'll
mention later.  But I don't agree with those people that seem to put down
these feminine or masculine feelings (and recognizing them as such) instead
of feeling normal.

In reading sci-fi books with female protagonists, I can usually tell if the
author is female or male.  Does anyone else get this feeling?  Are you men
on the network able to determine if an author is male or female by the way
the male protagonists is protrayed?  I'm curious.
What attributes are we picking up from these books?

For example, 3 science fiction books
	C.J. Cherryh  -  40000 in Gehenna
	F.M. Bussy  -  Rissa Kerguelen series
	Robert Heinlein - The Number of the Beast
Each have a competent female protagonist.
Heinlein's female is not real to me - instead she is obviously what HE
would consider to be the perfect woman.
C.J. Cherryh seems to capture the "feminine" feeling and relates it well.
As I read it, I feel only a woman could know those feelings.
F.M. Bussy - well I'm not sure here.  The woman is too "macho".  I think this 
is a female author, but she seems to have dropped the "feminine" side of this
woman.
I don't necessarily want to discuss these books in particular, they are just
examples.

Now - when do I feel fem/mas?
	The first thing that came to mind was when I was a good raquetball player
(about 5 years ago), at least good enough to play mixed doubles with the 
resident pros (male).  My female counterpart was my equal, but the our male
partners were much better than us.  Yet the ballet of playing with 4 of us
on that small court, their reliance on us as partners, all of us playing
our hardest - Well, I never felt so alive.  There were shots of mine that
could be categorized as "feminine" (not powerful but well executed); yet
the whole scene was very aggressive (masculine).  I don't know if I could
put all this down as feeling feminine or masculine - maybe it was sensuous?

	A surprising "feminine" feeling to me has been wearing maternity clothes.
Many blouces have lent to me and are frillier than I usually wear.  It feels
kind of nice.  Having been in a male dominated profession for 10 years,
I tended to downplay my feminine side.  I've tried to change this in the
past 4 years - it's nice to find another area for me to work on.

-celeste