Feminism And Gender Equality In The 1990s :: essays papers

Feminism And Gender Equality In The 1990sOverall, the rights and status of women guide improved considerably in the last century however, gender equality has recently been threatened within the last decade. Blatantly sexist laws and practices are slowly being eliminated while accessible perceptions of womens roles continue to stagnate and even degrade back to traditional ideals. It is these social perceptions that challenge the evolution of women as equal on all levels. In this study, I will argue that subtle and blatant sexism continues to exist throughout educational, economic, professional and legal arenas. Women who carefully follow their pass judgment roles may never recognize sexism as an oppressive force in their life. I find many parallels between womens experiences in the nineties with Betty Friedans, in her essay The Way We Were - 1949. She dealt with a society that expected women to fulfill certain roles. Those roles completely disregarded the needs of educated an d motivated business women and scientific women. Actually, the subtle message that society gave was that the educated woman was in reality selfish and evil.I remember in particular the searing effect on me, who once intended to be a psychologist, of a story in McCalls in December 1949 calledA Weekend with Daddy. A little girl who lives a lonely life withher mother, divorced, an intellectual k flat-it-all psychologist, goesto the country to spend a pass with her father and his new wife,who is wholesome, happy, and a good cook and gardener. And there islove and laughter and growing flowers and hot clams and a gourmetcheese omelet and square dancing, and she doesnt want to go home.But, pitying her poor mother typing away all by herself in thelonesome apartment, she keeps her guilty secret that from now on shewill be living for the moments when she can escape to that dreamhome in the country where they know what life is all about. (SeeEndnote 1)I have often consulted my grandparents about their experiences, and I find their historical perspective enlightening. My grandmother was pregnant with her third child in 1949. Her work experience included intimate design and modeling womens clothes for the Sears catalog. I asked her to read the Friedan essay and let me know if she felt as moved as I was, and to share with me her experiences of sexism. Her present(prenominal) reaction