take care of the weakness

[GoodTaste]

Susan: Both your biology and chemistry are excellent, Jack. But I think you are weak at math.
Jack: OK. I will take care of the weakness of mine. You are good at mathemeticas, Susan, a rare gift for girls. Would you like to help me out on this? (At this point, Susan smiles at Jack. A secret plan is brewing in her mind - hunting for a husband and Jack is exactly a good candidate as her Mr. Right.)

Source: English writing practice by me.

The question here is whether "take care of the weakness" is a proper collocation and natural in English.

 

[tedmc]

Yes, take care in the context means deal with.

 

[emsr2d2]

I don't think it's appropriate to suggest that being good at maths is rare in girls/women.

 

[tzfujimino]

... and it's "mathematics".

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Susan: Both your biology and chemistry are excellent, Jack. But I think you're weak at math.
Jack: OK. I'll take care of the weakness of mine. You're good at mathemetics, Susan, a rare gift for girls. [Jack just insulted Susan twice. First, he's saying women are stupid. Second, a girl is a child, and Susan is an adult. (Children don't look for husbands.)] Would you like to help me out on this? (At this point, Susan smiles at Jack. A secret plan is brewing in her mind: She's hunting for a husband, and Jack is [STRIKE]exactly[/STRIKE] a perfect candidate for Mr. Right.)

Source: English writing practice by me.

The question here is whether "take care of the weakness" is a proper collocation and natural in English.

It's grammatical but not natural. Use something like:

- I'll work on it.
- I'll practice.
- I'll study harder.

 

[Tdol]

I don't think it's appropriate to suggest that being good at maths is rare in girls/women.

It does sound a bit 1950s. I am not young but was born in the times when women could count.

 

[Rover_KE]

... and it's "mathematics".

You were right to correct GoodTaste's 'mathemeticas', tsfujimino, but in BE, maths and in AE, math are acceptable abbreviations in all but the most formal of contexts.

 

[GoodTaste]

[Jack just insulted Susan twice. First, he's saying women are stupid. Second, a girl is a child, and Susan is an adult. (Children don't look for husbands.)]

For a young woman, hunting for husband is a sacred mission.

Cambridge Dictionary defines "girl" as "a female child or young woman, especially one still at school." Susan is 18, still at school. So calling her "girl" is appropriate according to this definition.

Harvard girls are among the smartest girls in the world. The name "Harvard Girls" or "Girls at Harvard" is a symbol of honor. Is it insulting? Absolutely NOT. So I think your feeling might stem from regional English.

Talking about regional languages and their sometimes huge influences, I'd like to mention a famous writer of Taiwan, Qiong Yao, whose love novels made a hit in Mainland China. One of them depicts how a girl falls in love with her teacher. The girl is particularly gifted on liberal arts, yet she is very slow on maths. The novel creates a strong impression that girls are not good at maths and teachers should focus on cultivating their abilities on liberal arts. It seems to be a clever educational strategy. And so, when Jack says "a rare gift for girls", it does not impress me as an insult. To the contrary, it compliments Susan as both good at liberal arts and maths.

But times may have changed.

I don't think it's appropriate to suggest that being good at maths is rare in girls/women.

 

[emsr2d2]

I didn't say it was an insult to Susan but it's an unacceptable sweeping generalisation about the entire female population of the planet. Of course I understand that the world is full of different cultures - I'm sure that in some of them "For a young woman, hunting for husband is a sacred mission" is a statement of fact but it isn't the case in the vast majority of English-speaking countries. You're getting corrections and opinions from speakers (mostly) of BrE, AmE, CanE and AusE (sorry if I've missed any obvious ones) and our responses will come from the point of view of people who believe that, in the 21st century, equality between the sexes is not just a great goal but is becoming more and more of a reality every day. We would no more say that girls/women aren't usually good at maths any more than we would suggest that only men can/should become doctors or pilots.

 

[Tarheel]

Generally speaking, boys are better at math than girls. But there are exceptions. Some girls are very good at it. Some boys are very bad at it.

 

[GoesStation]

Generally speaking, boys are better at math than girls. But there are exceptions. Some girls are very good at it. Some boys are very bad at it.

And we know nothing about whether this occurs for biological or social reasons.

 

[emsr2d2]

Generally speaking, boys are better at math than girls.

Tosh! ;-)

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I didn't say it was an insult to Susan . . . .

I did.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

For a young woman, hunting for husband is a sacred mission.

Yes. Not for a girl.

Cambridge Dictionary defines "girl" as "a female child or young woman, especially one still at school." Susan is 18, still at school. So calling her "girl" is appropriate according to this definition.

I'll let you go with Cambridge, then. However, my wife, mother, and sister wouldn't. Careful!

Your original text didn't say her age. It simply said she was looking for someone to marry. So I understood her to be an adult.

I avoid calling eighteen-year-olds girls or boys. They often think of themselves as adults, so I try to treat them that way.

 

[GoodTaste]

Your original text didn't say her age. It simply said she was looking for someone to marry. So I understood her to be an adult.

I avoid calling eighteen-year-olds girls or boys. They often think of themselves as adults, so I try to treat them that way.

You haven't explained Harvard Girls, who are students in the University. They are usually >= 18 years old.

 

[GoesStation]

You haven't explained Harvard Girls, who are students in the University. They are usually >= 18 years old.

While many young women refer to each other as "girls", it's often seen as demeaning for others to use the word. You should call female Harvard undergraduates Harvard women.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

While many young women refer to each other as "girls", it's often seen as demeaning for others to use the word. You should call female Harvard undergraduates Harvard women.

Definitely.