Posted on 04/09/2019 3:39:24 AM PDT by Kaslin
I have decided to finally read what is widely regarded as the literary work that unleashed the modern feminist movement, Betty Friedan's "The Feminine Mystique."
I am halfway through the book, and I find it to be a well-written cri de coeur (cry from the heart). Historically speaking, there was always much to lament regarding the status of women. Though I have none of the contempt Friedan has for "housewifery," her description of women who felt they had no sense of self because they were only someone's wife and some children's mother is emotionally compelling.
But a big and troubling thought hit me while reading the book. In the 56 years since "The Feminine Mystique" was published, every complaint Friedan made regarding the situation of the American woman has been addressed. Few American women are forced into "housewifery." The few women who choose to place marriage and home over career have truly chosen to do so; it is the rare young woman for whom marriage and family are greater goals than a successful career. Nor do women any longer go from high school to the wedding chapel. They go from high school to college and often graduate school. In fact, far more women go to college than men.
Yet, if you were to listen to many American women today, you would think nothing has improved. Every women's group and millions of individual women say women are "oppressed" despite the fact that virtually nothing remains of the "feminine mystique" described by Friedan.
In January 2017, between 3 and 5 million American women took part in the Women's March, widely regarded as the largest number of Americans to participate in a single-day march in the nation's history. A year later, millions of American women again participated in the Women's March in marches around the country.
Feminist groups describe the state of American women in dire terms. Young middle-class and upper-class women, many attending the most expensive universities -- paid for by their parents -- are among the greatest malcontents in American life.
In fact, women today, including young women, who lead lives the very opposite of those described in "The Feminine Mystique," are about twice as likely to be depressed as men. And that statistic is true for women across all economic, racial and ethnic groups.
So, then, what was my big and troubling thought?
If women are as likely -- perhaps more likely -- to complain about being oppressed today when they aren't oppressed as they did when they were oppressed, and if women today are nearly twice as likely as men to be depressed, and if women at elite colleges -- where they are pampered and more assured a financially successful future than most men living now or who lived in the past -- are particularly angry and malcontented, simple logic suggests two choices: Either women remain as oppressed as in the past, or women tend to be malcontents.
Given that the reality is that American women -- especially the ones who do the most complaining -- are not oppressed, we are left to conclude that the female of the human species may tend toward being malcontents. The simple-minded will respond to this exactly as they were indoctrinated to respond -- not by asking, "Is it true?" but by accusing the person who offers this suggestion of sexism and misogyny.
So, allow me to respond in advance: This is no more an attack on women than describing men's nature as aggressive is an attack on men. Each sex has built-in issues that an individual has to overcome in order to develop into a mature and good person. Men have to deal with aggression and the sexual predatory aspect of male nature in order to develop into mature and good men. Women have to overcome the power of their emotions and their chronic malcontentedness in order to mature into good women. But in our disordered society -- a society that has rejected wisdom -- in raising their children, two generations of Americans have told only their sons, not their daughters, that they had to fight their nature. The feminization of society has brought with it the destructive notion that only males have to suppress their nature. Feminists really believe females are superior, so why would women have to fight any aspect of their inherently beautiful nature?
Finally, this helps explain why one would consider the left feminine and the right masculine. Though life in America is a blessing for the vast majority of its citizens, the left constantly complains about America. Indeed, the better America gets, the louder the left's complaints about America -- about its racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia, bigotry, xenophobia, inequality, systemic bias, etc. The right, on the other hand, regards life's difficulties as inherent to life, not inherent to America's flaws, and doesn't much complain. Like men, conservatives complain less than liberals. And just as male and female feminists demand that American men complain more -- that their lack of complaining is a form of "toxic masculinity" -- the American left demands that Americans complain more.
All these women's marches and angry women at colleges probably tell us more about women's nature than about American sexism.
When I got married, I was told by many, “Happy wife, happy life”. I think that one phrase shows that we all know that women are malcontents. Men have to bend over backwards just to minimize women’s constant grudges and dissatisfaction with their lives.
JoMa
"To the woman he (God) said, I will greatly increase your labor pains; with pain you will give birth to children. You will want to control your husband, but he will dominate you." Genesis 3:16
Most modern women are best understood as little girls who never grew up (neoteny if you want a word to impress your friends)—once you get that you can actually begin to enjoy their company (and understand why it can be so exhausting to spend a lot of time around them).
There are exceptions, of course—humans never do follow all the rules. ;-)
I had a long FB chat with a younger woman (ex-student) last night. She is married and had her first child 4 months ago. She is having an existential crisis about whether to be a stay at home mom or continue to work. She wants to continue to work, but it agonizes her to leave her baby in daycare and not spend more time with him. They won’t give her any flex time at work. She describes going into the rest room for extended crying breaks over the situation. To remedy things, she wants to switch careers to something she can do at home, but does not want to go back to school. In fact, she wants to immediately switch careers, make more $$ in the new career and work from home while taking care of her baby.
I told her that her chances of pulling that off were slim and none. That further upset her. Apparently her husband makes okay (but not great) $$ and would support her staying home. They are used to two incomes and she has it in her head she wants to be VP by 35. I felt like mentioning, but didn’t, that she has been programmed (by popular culture) to think she could have it all and now she is finding out the reality is quite different.
I actually ended the chat more alarmed by her condition than when we started. She was always smart and logical, but now seems to have abandoned all logic. She just wants what she wants and she wants it now.
(neoteny if you want a word to impress your friends)
I know what women want.
Loud chirping loud chirping boys. In reality present women have destroyed Germany,England and Hillary was working on the US. Until Trump gave her plan a punch in the mouth.
No. It is not an innate tendency toward malcontentedness. It is not—dear gawd—can you men ever let go of this, our “emotions “. At least Dennis didn’t bring up hormones.
He’s confusing gender with brainwashing. I was a kid during the early days of the women’s movement and remember it well. Libs did what they always do. They identified a legitimately oppressed group and exploited the hell out of it in the service of their own agenda.
The women marching in cat hats and yoni suits are products of systemic programming. That’s why they all sound like a bunch of Chatty Cathy dolls. Pull her string and out will come one of several prerecorded sentences.
All of that said, if you think sexism is gone, you’re not paying attention. We remain a patriarchal culture and attitudes toward women as inferior seep out in many ways. Much of it can and should be dealt with on a personal level.
Female humans do not come out of the womb destined to be dissatisfied and disappointed with everything. Those babies grow up and become liberals.
“If women are as likely — perhaps more likely — to complain about being oppressed today when they aren’t oppressed as they did when they were oppressed,..”
Garbage in, garbage out.
Women were not oppressed. Being governed according to your nature is never oppression.
Yoni suits?
attitudes toward women as inferior
The culture is biased against the natural ordered relation of the sexes—which has been off kilter since that fruit business sometime back.
“In fact, she wants to immediately switch careers, make more $$ in the new career and work from home while taking care of her baby. I told her that her chances of pulling that off were slim and none. That further upset her. Apparently her husband makes okay (but not great) $$ and would support her staying home. They are used to two incomes and she has it in her head she wants to be VP by 35. I felt like mentioning, but didn’t, that she has been programmed (by popular culture) to think she could have it all and now she is finding out the reality is quite different.”
They want men’s wages working women’s hours, with women’s responsibilities. I see the y=2x phenomenon at work, where retiring old white guys are replaced by two younger women - and they still don’t deliver the same results.
Well lets have a look at the Democratic 2020 primary. You have a group of female senators that nobody is really going to vote for, I mean let’s get real.
Then you have this mayor and a representative whose greatest claim to fame is losing an election to Ted Cruz.
Who is the big news that the press is shamelessly fanboying over?
As the scripture says it was the woman who was first deceived. She is to be in subjection to her husband or to her father if not married.... that’s why she’s to be quiet in the churches. You may not like it but they are innately programmed to deceive and be deceived. And the scripture says she is to be saved through childbearing, other wise interpreted obedience to God
Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”
-God, week 1
If that were actually true, we'd be better off.
I wondered whatever became of Little Orphan Annie.
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