"The Bible is a remarkable fountain: the more one draws and drinks of it, the more it stimulates thirst."
- Martin Luther
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
I came across this passage in Lewis's That Hideous Strength the other day. I found it quite funny.
"What is 'women's day' in the kitchen?" asked Jane of Mother Dimble.
"There are no servants here," said Mother Dimble, "and we all do the work. The women do it one day and the men the next. What? No, it's a very sensible arrangement. The Director's idea is that men and women can't do housework together without quarreling. There's something in it. Of course, it doesn't do to look at the cups too closely on the men's day, but on the whole we get along pretty well."
"But why should they quarrel?" asked Jane.
"Different methods, my dear. Men can't help in a job, you know. They can be induced to do it: not to help while you're doing it. At least, it makes them grumpy."
"The cardinal difficulty," said MacPhee, "in collaboration between the sexes is that women speak a language without nouns. If two men are doing a bit of work, one will say to the other, 'Put this bowl inside the bigger bowl which you'll find on the top shelf of the green cupboard.' The female for this is, 'Put that in the other one there.' And then if you ask them, 'in where?' they say, 'in there, of course.' There is consequently a phatic hiatus." He pronounced this so as to rhyme with "get at us."
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Comments on "Jack On Gender":
3. Shrode
- 03/31/2004 12:57 am CST
That's awesome! THanks for sharing that passage. I'm so glad to hear that Lewis knew and understood my wife, because I don't. 
I've been trying to figure out that "put that there" thing for years. Imagine how good and right on a "Men are from _______, Women are from ______" book would have been if Lewis had written it.
5. J.C.
- 03/31/2004 6:02 am CST
DC:
I did the same thing, causing much confusion:
the Troll-Jesus Christ
Jared-Jimmy Carter
[can't remember]-Johnny Cash (posthumously)
My respective reactions were:
"Flattered, but really..."
"Them's fightin' words..."
"Huh?"
Can't wait to see what they say about you. ;-)
7. Marla
- 03/31/2004 9:08 am CST
It's funny because my husband and I are just the opposite of this. I'm the one who is detailed in my communication and he tends to be more vague...er, general ;)
9. Donna Marie Lewis
- 03/31/2004 11:37 am CST
My mother does the 'that thing' routine all the time. It can get frustrating. I've never noticed younger women doing this. ( Maybe Jack's experience of Mrs. Moore is coming into play here ? )
10. Jo
- 12/04/2005 2:15 am CST
This has been one of my favorite quotes out Hideous Strength since I read it for the first time and I've probably reread that part more than any other! My mom and I were just laughing the other day when I actually was guilty of doing this so badly that she didn't even catch my meaning! Jack is just too cool!
That's a great passage. Ever since my wife and I noticed it and laughed at it when we were reading through the Trilogy, we've found it to be quite true.