Defend Yourself!

I know a lot happened in the last few chapters we read but for some reason one comment Katsa made in chapter thirty-three really stuck out to me. While thinking about teaching Bitterblue how to fight she brings up, "How absurd it was that in all seven kingdoms, the weakest and most funerable of people- girls and women- went unarmed and were taught nothing of fighting, while the strong were trained to the highest reaches of their skill" (398). I thought about how this reflected in reality. Boys are brought up to know how to defend themselves or how to fight and girls are not taught to do so. Protection is not emphasized for girls. I never thought to know how to defend myself until I had a forieng exchange student living in my house named Jazzy. She was my older German sister. She asked me one day if I would know how to protect myself if I ever had to. I had no idea. She confessed to me that she had been raped when she was younger and that she did not know how to fight back. She did not want this to ever happen to me and taught me how to break someones nose if I were ever attacked. It seems that women do not even think about learning how to defend themselves until it's to late and they become victums of assault. If you live in a bad neighborhood then you are usually taught early on how to defend yourself, by learning defensive fighting skills or carrying mase, but those who live in peaceful neighborhoods are usually not taught. The horrors in the world are swept under the rug by parents and ignored to protect a child's innocence. When the horrors of the world become a reality for that untaught child they have no idea what to do and are defenseless. I think more young girls should be taught at an early age how to defend themselves but how to make this a reality is lost to me.  People want to protect their children and keep them boxed. This will never change. I googled to see what sort of things popped up and there are a lot of tips on how to defend yourself against a predator. One good site: http://ezinearticles.com/?Self-Defense-For-Teen-Age-Girls-and-Young-Women-When-You-Have-to-Fight-Off-a-Sexual-Attacker!&id=2494663 Check it out! Learn how to defend yourself even though your not Graced to do so! It's a bit over dramatic but understandable with such a seriouse topic.