How Fairytales Teach Boys to Hide Their Emotions | Francesca Cavallo | TEDxPadova
We talked about the way gender stereotypes harm girls, but what is their effect on boys? In this powerful and deeply personal TEDx Talk, NYT bestselling author Francesca Cavallo (Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls) invites us to rethink the stories we tell our sons — and how those stories shape the men they become.
After years empowering girls through storytelling, Francesca realized she had never truly trusted boys the same way. That insight sparked a journey into gender, shame, tenderness, and the emotional prisons we build around boys. Drawing from psychology, anthropology, and classic fairy tales, she reveals how the culture of domination we assign to boys mirrors the culture of submission once imposed on girls — and what we can do to break both. Want to raise emotionally healthy boys? Want to rewrite masculinity from the inside out? This talk is for you. Francesca Cavallo is the co-author of the global bestseller Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls and the creator of Stellar Stories for Boys of the Future, the first collection of fairy tales that reframe masculinity for children. Her books have sold over 8 million copies in 50+ languages. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx
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