“When I talked to adult women”, writes Judy Mann, “many of them described their adolescence with painful recollections that invariably had to do with a sense of lost self, a silencing of their voice, a loss of self-confidence and of identity”. Mary Pipher writes, “Something dramatic happens to girls in early adolescence. . . They lose their resiliency and optimism and become less curious and inclined to take risks. They lose their assertive, energetic and tomboyish personalities and become more deferential, self-critical and depressed”. Once silenced by their acculturation into contemporary adult femininity, they no longer have the words to speak their minds. If the problem is silence, the solution is therefore for young women to speak. Then who takes the lead?

What is the underlying theme of the passage?