Men's work? Women's work? Codswallop?

Question

What defines "men's work" and "women's work"? Culture? Era? Country? Religion?

Should boys & men be excused from washing dishes because this is "women's work"?

Should women be excluded from gardening because this is "men's work"?

Please share your thoughts with this Aussie girl.

Gypsy Queen

Answer 1

Well codswallop it's not. Has to do with everything you mentioned and the obvious one you porgot! Sex.

So from U.S. to Down Under, let's go to Russia and back a few thousand years. Ain't technology wonerfull? This is pretty universial.

The female is the repository of the human race. She is set aside by physical and functional differences and the importance of her roll. In most every species, male and female rolls are survival functions. In humans this is expanded into social, cultural, religious and political, etc.

Looking into the pre-Christian, mother earth, roots of Russian antiquity an interesting pre-tribal factor shows up in religion and carries into tribal living.

Virtues were determined, both defined and assigned, on the basis of survival and sex. The idea of virtue becomes very different from today. You really have to think of conditions long ago to get this revelation.

Males were assigned the virtues of bravery and freedom? The virtues then relate to biological function in terms of interrelation to each other and to the environment. The female virtues were kindness and fidelity. I think bravery and freedom stem from hunting and fear of the unknown, Kindness and fidelity stem from nurturing, both its importance and loss of mobility, due to the long maturity span for new born humans.

People who lived a sparse and harsh (no forgiveness for mistakes) and by our standards uncomplicated life said freedom was a virtue!!!? We think it's a condition - like not being in jail or license to do as one pleases.

So yours is an awesome question. The work assigned by nature, our time and our condition does in fact go to determine not only what chores we do but who does them and why? As conditions change our assignments tend to change with them.

Be kind. Realize that junior, or dad, has no idea that doing dishes is really this complicated; or why it is so manly to work in the garden.

Answer 2

Both men and women need to know how to do everything. You should be able to take care of yourself so all of us should be able to wash out clothes, do the dishes etc. Different people prefer different things. Lots of women love doing garden and yard work. Some men love cooking so I don't believe there is such a thing as men's or women's work.