Undoubtedly, there have been many women who are unsatisfied and unfulfilled with their role as wife, mother, and homemaker. The majority of this disgruntlement comes from the fact that for so long, women were given no choice in the matter; women were expected to become housewives and nothing more.
Today, however, women live in a very different world. While inequality in the workplace remains a major barrier to career-seeking women, the opportunity to choose life outside the family and home is tremendous. I, for example, have grown up with an emphasis on taking care of myself and withholding from marriage until I have truly found my own path. That said, I am incredibly excited for the day when I become a wife and, hopefully, a mother. I have always seen motherhood as a beautifully strong, challenging role, especially with the demands of our changing world. Does the fact that I want to embrace this type of "femininity" make me a bad person? Or worse, a bad woman?
Rachel's affirmation of Betty Friedan's stereotypical housewife makes me wonder about the value system of the entire feminist movement. Is there such a thing as being a good feminist? Is choosing motherhood over my elite education and potential a travesty? Absolutely not! Children's caretakers have by far the most important and influential role in shaping the youth of our future. If society does not recognize and support this task, then the responsibility of being a wife, mother, and homemaker is trivialized.
Perhaps I say this from my comfortable, opportunity ridden position of being an educated woman in the 21 century. I truly believe, however, that if these women had been empowered to value and cherish their imperative role and had been given the support and encouragement of the men around them, motherhood would carry a far better reputation than it did and still does today.
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