--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For centuries, no one was concerned that…" description: "\"“For centuries, no one was concerned that books weren’t girl-friendly, because no one really cared if girls read; but even so, we persisted for long en..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/foz-meadows-35520_books_for-centuries-no-one-was-concerned-that_924042.jpg" --- # For centuries, no one was concerned that books weren’t… ![“For centuries, no one was concerned that books weren’t girl-friendly, because no one really cared if girls read; but even so, we persisted for long enough that literature has slowly come to accommodate us. Modern boys, by contrast, are not trying to read in a culture of opposition. Nobody is…” quote by Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/foz-meadows-35520_books_for-centuries-no-one-was-concerned-that_924042.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/foz-meadows-35520_books_for-centuries-no-one-was-concerned-that_924042.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/591/foz-meadows-35520_books_for-centuries-no-one-was-concerned-that_924042.jpg) > ““For centuries, no one was concerned that books weren’t girl-friendly, because no one really cared if girls read; but even so, we persisted for long enough that literature has slowly come to accommodate us. Modern boys, by contrast, are not trying to read in a culture of opposition. Nobody is telling them reading doesn’t matter, that boys don’t need to read and that actually, no prospective wife looks for literacy in a husband. Quite the opposite! Male literary culture thrives, both teachers and parents are throwing books at their sons, and the fact that the books aren’t sticking isn’t, as the nature of the complaint makes clear, because boys don’t like reading – no. The accusation is that boys don’t like reading about girls, which is a totally different matter. Because constantly, consistently, our supposedly equal society penalises boys who express an interest in anything feminine. The only time boys are discouraged from books all together is in contexts where, for whatever reason, they’ve been given the message that reading itself is girly – which is a wider extrapolation of the same problem.”” [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society often discourages boys from reading content about girls, framing it as feminine, which limits their literary engagement. **In simple terms:** Boys are discouraged from reading about girls, seen as feminine. Key Takeaway Encourage diverse reading without gender bias. Themes gender bias reading habits education stereotypes Mood reflective concerned Type analytical observational When to use this quote - school curricula - parental guidance - media recommendations - book clubs - literacy programs Key Concepts social conditioning identity formation cultural expectations Questions to Reflect On - How can we make all topics appealing regardless of gender? - What role do parents play in shaping reading preferences? A Different Perspective Some may argue that the issue is not gender but overall reading interest; ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Aren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-aren-447380/) [Boys-reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boys-reading-23359/) [Gender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gender/) [Literary Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/literary-culture-642943/) [Male Literary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/male-literary-1453031/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading Girly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-girly-1453033/) [Telling Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telling-reading-1453032/) ## Related quotes > [“everything in our culture tells men and boys to avoid any interest, activity or community dominated by women - and when article after article…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/everything-in-our-culture-tells-men-and-boys-to-avoid-any-interest/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [I think our sexuality is all yet to be recounted and that the rich male literary tradition constitutes a huge obstacle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elena-ferrante/i-think-our-sexuality-is-all-yet-to-be-recounted-and-that-the-rich/) [Elena Ferrante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elena-ferrante/) > [The culture is still there, and people are still doing it. 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America treats best-sellers like literary lions and literary lions worse than stray dogs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-b-lentz/hacks-are-killing-our-national-literary-culture-america-treats-best/) [David B. Lentz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-b-lentz/) > [“593 Still (very still), at the heart of “literary culture” is the big, blockbuster novel by middle-of-the-road writers, the run-of-the-mill four-hundred-page page-turner. 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Manx stretched. "Yes." "A hat with - just to be clear - a lizard on it. A real, dead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/it-s-a-hat-said-jess-manx-stretched-yes-a-hat-with-just-to-be-clear-a/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [“Never having experienced inequality, therefore, the majority of straight white men will be absolutely oblivious to their own advantages – not because they must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/never-having-experienced-inequality-therefore-the-majority-of/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [“it strikes me that the writers most deeply concerned with the state of literary fiction and its biases against women could do a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/it-strikes-me-that-the-writers-most-deeply-concerned-with-the-state/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [“And against whom is this censorship directed? By way of answer, think back to the big subcultural debates of 2011 – debates about how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/and-against-whom-is-this-censorship-directed-by-way-of-answer-think/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [“As a fantasist, I well understand the power of escapism, particularly as relates to romance. But when so many stories aimed at the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/as-a-fantasist-i-well-understand-the-power-of-escapism-particularly/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [“Something that’s bothered me for a while now is the current profligacy in YA culture of Team Boy 1 vs Team Boy 2 fangirling.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/something-that-s-bothered-me-for-a-while-now-is-the-current/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [“In the past few years, more and more passionate debates about the nature of SFF and YA have bubbled to the surface. Conversations about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/in-the-past-few-years-more-and-more-passionate-debates-about-the/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) > [“True, life is complex. But so are a great many accidents.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foz-meadows/true-life-is-complex-but-so-are-a-great-many-accidents/) [Foz Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) [Explore all 13 Foz Meadows quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foz-meadows/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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Krebs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-k-krebs/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. 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Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) [Markus Herz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-herz/) > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“For centuries, no one was concerned that books weren’t girl-friendly, because no one really cared if girls read; but even so, we persisted for long enough that literature has slowly come to accommodate us. Modern boys, by contrast, are not trying to read in a culture of opposition. Nobody is telling them reading doesn’t matter, that boys don’t need to read and that actually, no prospective wife looks for literacy in a husband. Quite the opposite! Male literary culture thrives, both teachers and parents are throwing books at their sons, and the fact that the books aren’t sticking isn’t, as the nature of the complaint makes clear, because boys don’t like reading – no. The accusation is that boys don’t like reading about girls, which is a totally different matter. Because constantly, consistently, our supposedly equal society penalises boys who express an interest in anything feminine. 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