Some of the code girls were affected by the extended secrecy of their work. How do you imagine that keeping secrets, however necessary, might affect a person's relationships or her identity in the world?
Created: 09/26/18
Replies: 8
Join Date: 10/15/10
Posts: 3442
Some of the code girls were affected by the extended secrecy of their work. How do you imagine that keeping secrets, however necessary, might affect a person's relationships or her identity in the world?
Join Date: 08/01/16
Posts: 70
The work done by the women saved thousands of lives and the time spent code breaking was probably the most important part of their past. I think it would have been very difficult to be in a relationship in which the partner was more important. A relationship is built on openness and trust. Having to hold back on such an important part of the past must have been extremely difficult and frustrating. Once the war ended, the women were not treated as being as important as the men and that must have been hard. I admired their grace in the situation
Join Date: 02/24/17
Posts: 64
The burden of carrying these secrets and the terror of accidently revealing something that might hurt the nation and the war effort was a tremendous. The book describes the limitation of being able to expand their circle of friendship. Of course, it had the benefit of creating a small "tribe" of friends who were well aware of each others contributions and worth. The effect on familial relationships must have been huge...I can't imagine keeping such secrets for such a long time without it causing guilt in a romantic, long-term relationship such as marriage. These women made tremendous sacrifices for us!
Join Date: 08/19/11
Posts: 214
Having had jobs that required secrecy, I found it easy to do after a day. If a person can go 24 hours without a word, the next day will bring something else to keep you occupied. As nice as gossip can be, some information is just not for other's ears.
Join Date: 04/21/11
Posts: 281
Keeping the secrets that the code girls were required might cause an immense amount of stress and resentment. It may have been essential to keep it hush-hush, but keeping in mind how many thousands of women were in the military cryptanalysis, in reality I wonder how many actually did? Justification of the time they were supposed to forget what they had contributed to the war effort seemed out of context.
I can't understand why a day of keeping a secret (not gossip, which is much different from the government war intelligence the code girls encountered) would over time make it easier to keep classified information secret. But then, I guess that may be why these specific women were chosen? And maybe I need further clarification on this point?
Join Date: 05/29/15
Posts: 460
I'm sure it was very difficult and stressful for the women to keep their secrets but they knew loose lips sunk ships. Their concern for their brothers, fathers, fiances and friends made it necessary.
Join Date: 06/25/13
Posts: 347
I agree with dianeh that this was probably the most important thing they did in life and to not be able to talk about it, even their families, had to be so difficult. I cannot imagine trying to keep a secret that was such a big part of my life. How do you not tell your husband. I must admire them for this, but it must have taken a toll on them
Join Date: 08/29/11
Posts: 61
Having to keep one's work secret could have a massive impact on one's relationships with others. I believe most people would find it nearly impossible to have a "normal" life while having to squelch what they are doing at work--especially when it involves such critically vital duties.
Join Date: 09/14/12
Posts: 111
I think that at the time the women were working is wasn't as hard to keep secrets as it was later in life. To have to not tell your husband what a vital part you played in the war must have been heartbreaking.
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