I found this article in the Washington Post about how women now are making more money than their male counterparts. It also furthers that idea by saying not just women, but married women are "bring home the big bucks" more than their husbands. Women are now about to make up a majority of the US workforce, are now graduating from college in higher numbers than men, and so now are becoming the better educated, higher-paid of the two.
Petula Dvorak, the author of this article, says that men now have it better off because they can just sit back and relax while women do all the work. Not only are more women now working, but they also have to keep up with the kids and housework. So we're basically doing both jobs. Really, what would they do without us? However, she goes on to say that because of this, more women today are depressed. They do not have the time to relax like their husbands because they are constantly working.
One of the last points that she makes is that our generation is now expected to be both the "house mom" as well as the "working mom." Whew. Seems like this will become a difficult thing for us to juggle.
I would hope that every woman feels that no matter which "job" they choose, that they do not feel belittled or feel as though they are too hardcore because since our generation now has both options, we should therefore be able to choose whichever one we want or both, and not be criticized for our choice.
Thanks for sharing this. I’m glad to see that more women are taking a stand and becoming the primary source of income in their families. There is no rule that says that the breadwinners have to be men!
ReplyDeleteI think this article relates to the Marilyn Waring documentary we watched last week because it shows how much emphasis is placed on women making money but how no importance is placed on the worth of women doing daily duties to take care of her family.
One thing the article pointed out was how more men are now at home doing domestic duties.
The article states:
"When men load the dishwasher, many people still say they are helping out at home (do you ever say a woman is 'helping' when she does the laundry?). And when a husband takes care of the kids, most folks call it 'babysitting.'"
I found this article very interesting as well as your interpretation of the overall message being presented about the “house mom” and “working mom”. As a child brought up with both parents working full-time jobs, my view on this subject may be more skewed then others. Although my mom was never the “bread winner”, her income greatly contributed to the comfortable lifestyle my family was able to live. Having my mother as a role model only encourages me more then ever to feel as though it is possible to be both provider and caretaker.
ReplyDeleteThese are my own personal beliefs, but when discussing this subject I can’t help but question how other women decide what is more important- their career or role as mother. And depending on their decision, I’d be curious to see whether they feel a certain level of pressure when choosing one or the other, if they feel guilty about their decision, or if they chose to combat both roles, how would they prioritize and manage both?
This subject can become very controversial but I think it is fascinating to see how personal backgrounds and family structures influence these type of decisions especially in a society that is becoming more open to the “working mom”.
So what about single moms who have to do all that stuff anyway? Or single dads who do? And what does this article imply about women's "complacency" to take on all this work? Are married women simply accepting their roles and watching their husbands sit back and relax? What does this say about the attitudes of men? Do they feel like it's not in their "job description" to step up be an equal partner in the family system? Do men feel entitled to this "sit back and relax" behavior? Should women have to be the ones to say something about all this work they're doing, or what needs to happen? Studies like this are fine, I guess, but they just leave many many more questions and no suggestions for improvement...
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