x+y

x+y.indd 1 06/05/2020 15:47

 x+y
A Mathematician’s Manifesto
for Rethinking Gender

EUGENIA CHENG

PROFILE BOOKS

x+y.indd 3 06/05/2020 15:47

 Copyright © 2020 by Eugenia Cheng
Cover copyright © 2020 by Hachette Book Group, Inc.
Hachette Book Group supports the right to free expression and the value of
copyright. The purpose of copyright is to encourage writers and artists to
produce the creative works that enrich our culture.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission
is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission
to use material from the book (other than for review purposes), please
contact permissions@hbgusa.com. Thank you for your support of the author’s
rights.
Basic Books
Hachette Book Group
1290 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10104
www.basicbooks.com
Printed in the United States of America
Originally published in June 2020 by Profile Books
First US Edition: August 2020
Published by Basic Books, an imprint of Perseus Books, LLC, a subsidiary
of Hachette Book Group, Inc. The Basic Books name and logo is a
trademark of the Hachette Book Group.
The Hachette Speakers Bureau provides a wide range of authors for speaking
events. To find out more, go to www.hachettespeakersbureau.com or call (866)
376-6591.
The publisher is not responsible for websites (or their content) that are
not owned by the publisher.
Print book interior design by Trish Wilkinson.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for.
ISBNs: 978-1-5416-4650-6 (hardcover); 978-1-5416-4651-3 (ebook)
LSC-C
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

9781541646506-text.indd 4 6/4/20 10:51 AM

 rich white male

rich white non-male rich non-white male poor white male

rich non-white non-male poor white non-male poor non-white male

poor non-white non-male

men
are observed to be
generally
Y

men men men

are by nature are observed to be are observed to be
generally always generally
Y Y Z

men men men

are by nature are by nature are observed to be
always generally always
Y Z Z

men
are by nature
always
Z

x+y.indd 6 06/05/2020 15:47

 age of subject

certainty that what we are measuring is:

nature, not nurture
indicative of adult behaviour

men women
£200,000 £10,000
£200,000 £10,000
£200,000 £10,000
£200,000 £10,000
£200,000 £1 million

mean £200,000 £208,000

men women
£100,000 £10,000
£100,000 £10,000
£100,000 £105,000
£450,000 £105,000
£450,000 £1 million

mean £240,000 £246,000

median £100,000 £105,000

x+y.indd 58
 mean mean

mode
median
mean

x+y.indd 58 06/05/2020 15:47

 pressures reaction equality
on men

pressures equality reaction

on women

‘masculine’ ‘feminine’
addressing issues of gender bias

miserable women
and progress
accusations of
‘reverse sexism’

maintaining the
‘gender blindness’
status quo

addressing issues of character

x+y.indd 110 06/05/2020 15:47

 ..
.
√ 2i
3
− 12 + 2 i
1i
1

−2 −1 0 1 2

−1i
√
3
− 12 − 2 i
−2i
..
.

society favours Y is associated with

men men

misogyny description prescription

perpetuation of
power structures
society favours
Y
men are
more Y
structural
bias

men are more

successful/powerful

! "# $ ! "# $
explicit bias implicit bias

x+y.indd 207 06/05/2020 15:47

 individuals’ society’s
behaviour structures
INDIVIDUALS SOCIETY

individuals’ society’s
attitudes expectations

Y is needed Y is an men tend to be

for success ingressive quality more ingressive

ingressive qualities
are needed for
success

men tend to be
more successful

x+y.indd 209 06/05/2020 15:47

 ingressive

congressive

Do you notice the risk?

yes no
Do you mitigate it? ACTION

no yes
Do you go ahead anyway? ACTION

no yes
ACTION

x+y.indd 210 06/05/2020 15:47