A glass baby bottle partly filled with milk stands beside a small brass gear on a narrow shelf.

Original artwork, not a still

Wilma Scott Heide

The only jobs for which no man is qualified are human incubator and wet nurse. Likewise, the only job for which no women is or can be qualified is sperm donor.

Behind the line

What it means

Our interpretation.

The speaker uses a short list of reproductive roles to challenge broad restrictions on work by gender. The repeated word only makes the argument pointed. It suggests that most claims about who is qualified for a job should not rest on that distinction.

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