Boys Will Be Boys



Boys will be boys,
But girls will grow up in a world,
Where their body determines their worth,
Wearing a crop top somehow inviting--
The visible thoughts flying
around your head.
They will soon learn to notice
slow eyes slithering, searching, studying.

Boys will be boys,
But women live in a world
where they are touched and grabbed,
Assaulted, stalked, and stabbed,
Silenced while screaming,
Holding in all the stress,
Because if they take one breath,
One flicker in the guard,
One moment of peace,
A man can swoop in
and steal their humanity.

Do I not matter to you?
Am I just here to flatter you?
To love and praise,
While in my head silently praying--
praying for your choice to be easy on me,
For masculine hands to go easy on me,
I have already accepted such a feat,
“So stay quiet, it’ll be quick”
My predetermined fate
apparently isn’t worth trying to save.

Boys will be boys,
But I must learn to
only accept a drink from someone I trust,
But even then, pepper spray and rape whistles are a must
But even then, I don’t know who to trust,
Because in my hour of need,
Boys will be the ones asserting power over me--

Boys will be boys,
But I must soon learn how to
hold my keys between my fingers,
To fight off all the dangers,
But even a hidden knife will never protect me,
Because the cards are stacked against me,
I have learned that I will most likely
Become one of those one in three.

My daily internal conflict:
To be pro-choice,
But to never have a choice
Because I can never be the one with the loudest voice--
That power is left up to the boys.

About this poem

I was upset about hearing the common phrase "boys will be boys" to make excuses for young boys acting in an inappropriate way. I wanted to point out the stark difference between the way society views boys and girls, as well as bring attention to the many horrors women and girls face on a day to day basis.

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Written on October 17, 2021

Submitted by thefirths1913 on March 28, 2022

Modified on April 24, 2023

1:42 min read
188

Quick analysis:

Scheme Abxccxxc Abddcxxxxxe ffxceexxxx Afgggxe Afhheeee xiiia
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 1,599
Words 340
Stanzas 6
Stanza Lengths 8, 11, 10, 7, 8, 5

Hannah Firth

Hannah Firth is an emerging poet, who is using the medium of poetry to amplify her voice while providing sharp commentary on the trials and tribulations of being a teen. more…

All Hannah Firth poems | Hannah Firth Books

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Discuss the poem Boys Will Be Boys with the community...

4 Comments
  • NOALLE
    I stumbled across your poem, and I am in awe. I especially love the part about becoming “one of those one in three”. I believe you should have received the first place title, but I’m glad you placed nonetheless. Please don’t stop writing/creating. 
    LikeReply1 year ago
    • thefirths1913
      Thank you so much! Oh wow! I call myself a "writer", but I've been writing and rewriting this response for the last half hour! I guess I'm trying to get it perfect because I know that few words will ever perfectly capture the feeling of knowing that somewhere, one day,
      oneperson will be able to relate to the words of a young, teenage girl.

      It is comments like these that make me want to write forever.
      Thanks again, -- Hannah. :)
       
      LikeReply 11 year ago
  • schlmj29
    Excellent Hannah, just excellent.
    LikeReply1 year ago
  • cecilia227
    It reminded me of a very powerful spoken word I once saw and I think it is the cold-hard, awful truth of today's society
    LikeReply1 year ago
  • frogsaregay_n
    I chose this poem because as a women I can relate to this poem. It gives me a sense of security knowing that I'm not alone though no one should have to go through what we as women go through.
    LikeReply 11 year ago

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"Boys Will Be Boys" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/124070/boys-will-be-boys>.

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