When you're a child, you have to ask permission for most of the things that you do, even very small things. It stops one from being a monster, or spoilt, I suppose. I don't know whether it's a holdover from childhood: I was given a strong message that when I left home, I was expected to stop being a child and grow up, with the expectation that I'd have some emotional support in doing that. But then women are given very conflicting messages about that because, basically, patriarchy, race and class in this country. So the expectation is that you grow up quite quickly, but at the same time there is a tacit understanding that other people have the right to tell you what to do and most of those people exceed their actual authority.