Re: Best Female Players--Who Cares?

aggielibrarian <*no_reply_at_yahoogroups.com*> · Fri, 09 May 2003 14:44:28 -0000

Umm, I was planning to say much the same thing, though possibly in 
gentler terms.  At first flattered by the mention or two I received, 
I gave the matter a little thought and decided that the whole idea is 
rather sexist, although I am quite sure no slight was intended.  It 
is one thing to be the best female (fill in the blank) in a 
competition that is divided by gender, but in a mixed competition 
where the important factors are memory, education, and intelligence, 
being divided off as the "female" players is a non-substantive 
identification.

I have played against many of the best players who have been 
mentioned, moderated for others.  It is true that the preponderance 
of the good/great players have been male; it is also true that the 
proportion of men to women in quizbowl is heavily skewed towards 
young men.  There have been long discussions on this board about why 
this is so, and no satisfactory answer has really been determined.  
Maybe the game just doesn't appeal to as many women.  Maybe the 
general social ineptness I have witnessed at many tournaments doesn't 
foster a welcoming environment for women.  Who knows?

Personally, I'd rather take pride in being a fairly decent player at 
my advanced age and with my slower reflexes than as being "okay, for 
a girl."

Candace
Texas A&M

--- In quizbowl_at_yahoogroups.com, thefool75 <no_reply_at_y...> wrote:
> I don't understand the relevance of this thread...
> Why don't we just ask who's the best Greek-Hungarian player, or the 
> best Indian player or the best player who wears glasses--until 
> someone demonstrates that their is an innate relationship between 
> one's gender and one's QB competency--I tend to think of this as 
> rather demeaning to women (because apparently they need to be 
singled 
> out because you know, women can't be as good as men....)  Why not 
> just say that so and so is a good player--why qualify it--aren't 
you 
> really saying, "she's good for a girl."
> 
> my 3 cents, nathan
> Flame away.