Since we have made a lot of progress in equality of the sexes, there have been a lot of social issues and confusion about what makes a woman what she is. I was raised in a time when girls were encouraged to strive for careers and ambitions relating to work. Also, many guys raised in my generation don't even want the stereotypical "stay at home" mom/wife. They would actually prefer an ambitious, smart lady who has a career and intellectual pursuits. A lot of girls my age look at household chores with disgust and disdain and think cooking and cleaning should be an option if they want to do it, if ever. If a guy asks a girl to cook, she snorts back "You pig-head!" Yet, in spite of all this, many still believe that there is no replacement for that special nurturing a woman can provide. If woman are now becoming bread-winners, what makes of men? What does it really mean to be a woman in this day and age?
2006-12-15 07:23:04 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Social Science ➔ Gender Studies
Being a woman today is all about choices. We can choose to stay at home or work. We can choose to have children or not. Fields of work that were not open to women at one time are slowly opening the doors. Women can be sports stars as well as fashion models.
It's true some guys don't want the stay-at-home mommy type, while others do. The important thing is NOT to beat each other up. To respect one another for our choices.
I've chosen a career and working and not to have children. That's just not what I want to do with my life. I confess to looking down on young moms before, but now I have a new attitude about these things and realize that that kind of behavior is what held the feminist movement back!
Choices and respect for those choices is what it's all about.
2006-12-15 07:56:28 · answer #1 · answered by AH0030 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Speaking as a stay at home mom, I have to say that it's hard to hold a candle to the working mom. We knock them for not being nurturing enough to their children and they snap back with we're just driving carpools and have no clue what it's like to work full time and then come home and be a mom. I go to school and am working towards a bachelor's degree and I still get asked when I'm going to get a job. It's hard to win in a world where you're judged by 'what you do'.
You are correct that the number of men who want a stay at home wife has gone down. But on that note, I once heard a couple arguing in the parking lot of a local grocery store about how she worked just as hard as he did that day. I had always thought that it was just the stay at home mom who got to have that particular discussion over who worked the hardest. But here I was discovering that even with both partners working this was still up for debate.
I enjoy cooking (sometimes) and cleaning, and don't mind doing it. However, I do see the point that men automatically look to the woman to do these jobs (in most cases). I have seen a few men that pitch in and do laundry or help with cleaning up.
As for the special nurturing that a woman can provide, this doesn't necessarily hold true. Not every woman is equipped with that natural 'maternal' side. I have seen some dad's who do better with the kids. Yes, their techniques are different, but still just as good.
To be a woman in this day and age simply cannot be defined in one word. We just have to remember that with the changes that have occurred over time there are bound to be consequences as well. With equality of the sexes comes an inequality among our own sex.
*Hope this made some sense at all!*
2006-12-15 11:45:01 · answer #2 · answered by unique2477 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You pose an interesting question with infinite answers. I believe the answer is something each woman (and man), have to find for themselves.
Personally, I believe being a woman simply means flexibility. It means having enough self respect to make choices for our lives that best fit our individual personalities, strenghts and desires.
If anything, I think being a woman today is easier than ever. Unlike our mothers and grandmothers, we can now choose wether to be a wife and mother, and/or have a career. We are no longer dependent upon men for our very survival, and this, I believe, will eventually open the doors to greater love and understanding between the sexes.
As for where does it leave a man if a woman is now a breadwinner as well? Have you looked at the cost of living these days? It leaves him still necessary for material support as well as emotional support. Living on only one income can be very challenging in today's world. And hopefully, having a help in that department will lighten his load enough to make him a better companion.
2006-12-15 14:33:03 · answer #3 · answered by CJ 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
RECOGNIZE that both of you have careers. And since both of you have careers, BOTH of you have to help each other with the cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc. No one person, male or female, can do it all. Not enough time. My wife and I have specific chores to do. And when we have time, we help the other.
However, if you are a minority woman with a career, then good luck! You will be hard pressed to find a man that will help, let alone actually have a job! Minority men for some reason feel that careers and jobs is something they do NOT need in their life.
Three of my coworkers are educated minority women. And all three say their husbands will not lift even one finger to do any housework, always out sick from their jobs.
2006-12-15 13:30:51 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You make my day! As an older woman and former feminist back in the day, I thought I'd never hear this. I am way used to hearing how young women want to suck up and be anything and everything "for their man" Many still do of course. witness the great amount of bulimics and anorexics.
For me, though I am older, being a woman today means developing those things that make me the most happy. My interests do include things like gardening, cooking, decorating, raising children (now a grandchild), but that is totally by choice as you say. I consider it the strong feminine and very Sacred. Another art that is strongly Sacred and Female is Healing. Once a completely feminine art, one of giving, of helping others, in recent centuries it has been taken over by men and made into a power seeking money making competitive thing. That is one reason I am training to be a physician ( I am a doctor in training) to reclaim it. And I see from the stats, many other women, especially young women are doing the same.
Right on Sisters!
2006-12-15 07:37:00 · answer #5 · answered by Greanwitch 3 · 1⤊ 3⤋
A woman is physically and psychologically designed a certain way. So, what it means to be a woman has not changed...but the perception of it HAS. Feminism has attempted to erase the traditional picture of a woman by suggesting that house-hold chores and the role of house-wife was to be viewed with disdain (your word for it too, BTW). Many have bought into this fallacy based on the lie that there is no difference, psychologically, between men and women. Now that we have scientific proof of what has always been readily apparent to those of us who have our feet planted firmly on the ground...that men and women's brains function differently and with different strengths and weaknesses...we are beginning to see a shift towards reality once more. Feminism's days are numbered as many realize that it was based on a lie and that it has never made good on any of its promises. Women are returning to the job of house-wife and are realizing that they are much happier doing those things where their natural strengths shine! Men who are leaders instead of lemmings (following the flow of things instead of leading), intent on finding such a woman, are now venturing to other parts of the world where feminism hasn't had it's impact on the minds of women.
What it means to be a woman has not changed any more than what it means to be a man has. Though some have strayed and found unhappiness is doing so, many are returning to their traditional roles and discovering for themselves just how fulfilling they can be!
2006-12-15 08:09:08 · answer #6 · answered by fishman 3 · 2⤊ 2⤋
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2016-10-15 00:29:38 · answer #7 · answered by Erika 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
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2006-12-15 07:30:43 · answer #8 · answered by bush-deathgrip 1 · 1⤊ 2⤋