Ofand Women Missing Works Cited There's an old saying that goes something to the tune of "sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me." It is possible that such a phrase was popularized to allow people to provide themselves with a psychological defense against the fact that words can, in fact, have enormous meaning depending on their use and context. The careful manipulation of language in essays, for example, is one way that words can be organized and exploited. This is a tool that authors often use to reach specific audiences. Like so many authors, Anne Richardson Roiphe exercises this technique in her 1972 essay in the New Yorker, entitled "Confessions of a Female Chauvinist Sow." One way Roiphe orchestrates her pattern in the essay is through the use of specific pronouns, such as “we,” “us,” “they,” and “you” to establish a rapport-like connection with female readers. The effect of this subtle device is that Roiphe is able to communicate directly with other women, allowing her to convey her personal thoughts and feelings to readers as if they were actually having a conversation. The twist, of course, is that Roiphe is also able to take advantage of this connection to spread her message of gender equality at the same time. But if this is Roiphe's aim, why is she concerned about gender equality in the first place? Consider her childhood: Roiphe was born in 1935, grew up in the midst of the Great Depression, and ended her first decade of life at the end of World War II. Roiphe would have seen women emerge from the devastation of the national disaster to occupy various positions in factories and workshops, where many women worked during the war while men were deployed for combat. Additionally, Roiphe would be introduced to one of the first female authority figures in First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. By the time Roiphe reached adulthood, she would be immersed in a culture torn by civil rights issues, arguments over Vietnam, and crusades for personal liberties. It is a culture that would harbor feelings of both resentment and pride. The women's rights movement was one such campaign that emerged from this turbulent era. Women, of course, had historically been shunned and excluded from nearly every aspect of society outside of the home.