Ringing the bell of Feminism - The Pavlovian Way

Ivan Pavlov’s theory of Classical Conditioning is the theory when a Neutral Stimulus gets paired with an Unconditional Stimulus and becomes a Conditioned Stimulus. According to Pavlov the process of conditioning begins with motivation. The one condition of Pavlov’s theory is that the subject lives in an empirical reality, which it can arrange. A Natural Stimulus is a stimulus, which presents no reaction in the subject when presented alone. An Unconditioned Stimulus is one that elicits an Unconditioned Response in the subject. An Unconditioned Response is a natural or automated reaction to the Unconditioned Stimulus. The Conditioned Stimulus is a previously neutral stimulus. Once paired repeatedly with the Unconditioned Stimulus, it starts producing the Conditioned Response. The Conditioned Response is a response, which is learnt over time.

The best way to learn Pavlov’s theory is using his experiment. Pavlov would present food in front of a dog, and it would immediately salivate. Pavlov then started presenting the food after ringing a bell. After repeatedly presenting the food after the ringing the bell, the dog got accustomed to the sound of the bell. After a certain point, the dog would salivate on hearing the ringing of the bell. In this example, the salvation of the dog was the Unconditioned Response and food was the Unconditioned Stimulus. The Bell was the Conditioned Stimulus, and the Salvation in reaction to the bell was the Conditioned Response. I want to use this theory when talking about one of my favorite books, “To Kill a Mockingbird”. My favorite character in that book is Scout, because she is unapologetically herself. She crosses all the stereotypes of being a girl. She liked wearing breeches, rather than frilly dresses. Instead of playing with tea sets, she was known for getting into fistfights and playing with her older brother. One of the incidents, which resonated with me, is Christmas at Aunt Alexandra’s house. In Scout’s words, “Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my attire. I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches: when I said I could do nothing in a dress, she said I wasn’t supposed to be doing things that require pants. Aunt Alexandra’s version of my deportment involved playing with small stoves, tea sets, and wearing the Add – A- Pearl necklace she gave me when I was born; further more, I should be a ray of sunshine in my father’s lonely life. I suggested that one could be a ray of sunshine in pants just as well” (To Kill a Mockingbird, pg. 90).

The reason I have chosen to write about Scout is because of all the characters in this book, I relate to her the most. Growing up in India as a girl was very hard. All around, you hear people saying things like “Girls are weak; Girls are cry babies; Girls are easy to beat”, or you hear boys been asked “Why are you crying, are you a girl?” In every child’s head, it gets ingrained that girls are the weaker sex. Girls can’t play sports; girls are just not good enough. As a girl this infuriated me. Just like Scout, I did not abide by any of the gender stereotypes. Just like her aunt, I had an annoying grandmother, who would pick on every little thing I would do. Which is why, I always related to Scout. When I read the book for the first time, I could see myself in her.

I would like to describe Ivan Pavlov’s theory using an example, which is prevalent in India; young boys are always told to stop crying. When they cry as children, they are always asked, “Are you a girl? Then why are you crying?” “Boys don’t cry so stop crying”, “Stop acting like a girl” This could also explain why a lot of men turn out to be ‘emotionless’ as adults. The stimulus that caused them to cry, such as being hit, or punished or bullied, is the Unconditioned Stimulus, and crying would be the Unconditioned Response. The repeated command of being told not to cry is the Conditioned Stimulus, which leads to the Conditioned Response of not showing any emotion and assuming that girls are weak because they show emotion.

I used this as an example, because I have been victim to gender discrimination. In my childhood, I was told that women have to be the softer ones in the relationship. Women have certain roles that they have to fulfill. Women have to be at their husband’s beck and call. Just like Scout, I decided not to abide by these. When I was growing up, my grandmother would say things like, “you need to wear more dresses”, “stop always playing with boys”, “you need to learn how to cook so that you can cook for your husband”. Before I could understand what she meant by all this, I would still notice the preference given to boys. My brother could get away with anything, like getting into trouble at school. Wile one the other hand, if I forgot my school book at home, I would get shouted at. The constant comparison between boys and girls, in this case, my brother and I, is the Unconditioned Stimulus. To that my Unconditioned Response was anger. Instead of feeling hopeless, I decided that I would prove them wrong. Then the constant corrections made by my aunt, along with comments from other people, became the Conditioned Stimulus. My behavior to do what I want, even if society considers it to be “boisterous”, is my Conditioned Response. I could not handle the comparison, so instead of disappointed and cowering to the prejudice, I decided to go against it.

In this way I relate to Scout. I understand her resilience to be who she is. The way Atticus stands by her is the way my mother brought me up. When I read the book I felt proud of her, because I saw myself in her. It was interesting to me that I could analyze my connection with Scout, using Pavlov’s Classical Conditioning.