She raises one perfectly arched
eyebrow and leaves one dainty,silky curl out of her red and white polka dotted bandanna. Showing off her cocky muscles by arrogantly raising her arm and tightening her biceps, this powerhouse uses soft eyes to pierce through her
viewers and dares them to question her strength, will, authority and gender.
Lips pursed and strawberry colored, she proudly makes her statement of “We
Can Do It” to women all over the world. Rosie the Riveter is not just a
painting of a ‘masculine woman’ on a poster, but she is the spirit and
confidence that empowers women of all ages, colors and cultural backgrounds to
chase their dreams. She broke social barriers in 1942 and now you can find
Rosie’s all over this vast planet. Women of today are more than eye candy,
kitchen masters, and receptionists. Having breasts and ovaries automatically
sets women apart as being emotionally unstable, too sympathetic, and unequal to
men.
Although sexism is an illogical
concept, women still endure being judged because of their gender. People, women
included, sometimes argue that women need to become more aggressive to get
ahead in the workforce. Also, the old image of a woman taking care of the
children and her husband, cleaning the home with not one strand of hair out of
place, and having dinner on the table all with a smile and stain free dress,
still hovers over the entire world. The idea that a woman should not want to
climb the cooperate ladder or receive higher education still is conditioned
into people’s brains. Women are just as worthy as men to receive an education
and climb the corporate ladder all while keeping their unique personality and
maintaining their image. Women need not change their attitudes, behavior, or
work ethics to get ahead in modern America.
Often times than not, women are
viewed upon as either three things: an independent woman with an attitude, a
housewife or a gold-digger. In the American society today there is no in
between. If they have a great level of education and hold a high position in
the workforce they are automatically snobs and aggressive. Of course if they
prefer to stay at home, take care of their children, and keep an organized home
while their husband is bringing home the bacon, they are looked upon as
submissive and boring. Lastly, if they marry to be financially taken care of
then they are money hungry and failures Fortunately, these three categories do
not apply to all women and are overall general assumptions.
So in this society chained to walls
of stereo-types, isms, and close-mindedness, it is hard for a woman to actually
pick something that she is passionate about and achieve within that field
because all of her choices, achievements and failures will be thoroughly
scrutinized. However, a man can choose to end his education at the high school
level because a popular sports team wants him to join, but if a woman does the
exact same action she is making rushed decisions. A man can have multiple
projects going on within his life and he is referred to as a business man but
when a woman starts to increase her resume, she is unfocused and picky. This
chain of behavior and discrimination has been going on for ages but now society
has come up with the perfect idea for women to be successful in life—act more
like a man!
In a recent blog by Clay Shirky
entitled “A Rant about Women, the author submits that if women want to get
ahead in the workforce, they will have to act more like men. Shirky uses personal
experience, common knowledge and smart language to convey his opinions about
women better promoting themselves. He refers to men as jerks and asks readers
many interesting questions referring back to the difference in men and women as
far as risks. The author explains how he told a “white lie” just to get into a
prestige class during his college years; he declares that women will never do
such things to get ahead. Shirky does not downplay the talents or importance of
women in his essay, but he clearly believes that women can and should do better
jobs of promoting their talents to get ahead. He sums the essay up with taking
the readers on a ride to his classroom and explaining that although many women
may be better than men in certain areas, such as creativity, the men will
always come out on top because they are more willing to risk failure for
success. (Shirky)
Although Shirky has many great
points within his article, is it really a good idea for women to have to change
their behavior to get recognized in the world? Must women put away their six
inch stilettos and blush to be considered a candidate for that executive board
position? Do all the presidential candidates have to carry a briefcase and wear
a necktie? Why must women lie to get ahead as most men? People live on planet
Earth which is commonly referred to as “she” and Mother Nature is
affectionately a female. Earth is the substance of our being and she is good
enough to be a female. Mother Nature controls the circle of life, but she is
not a male. So, how is that two major beings are in such great power but aren’t
males? So if the logic of Shirky’s article is correct this is what must take
place: Mother Nature should cause
hurricanes every day to get noticed and Earth should release its dangerous
wrath upon human beings to show whose boss.
The position of women in the human
being culture is pathetic and it is not about lying to get ahead, changing
their knee highs to slacks, or backstabbing their competition; it is about the
world recognizing discrimination in its purest form and eradicating it. Women
should not have to act more like men or change their personalities just to be
accepted as equal to men. (Friedman)
Hillary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Jackie Kennedy, Michelle Obama, and Barbara
Walters are all successful, politically known women who have sucker punched barriers
and knocked over gender bias. So, it is not women who need to change, it is the
system itself. It is the world that needs to realize that just because a fetus
grows into a person that will be categorized into a gender does mean that they
will grow up to be placed into a box.
The boxes that hold the women of
today are slowly being broken down and tossed out for tomorrow’s trash.
However, some still remain strong and cast a shadow over the hope of women
coming out victorious in the battle against sexism. These boxes include
stereotypes, job positions and even entertainment. It is difficult to
understand how major awards such as Oscars and Grammys are given to
entertainers based upon their talent, but the talent is divided up into
genders. It is not ok to divide those awards up into colors, so why is it ok
that we allow them to be divvied out because the actors are different
genders. (Elsesser)
If gender barriers are to be removed
and eradicated completely, it will take a lot of dedication, time, and
understanding within the human race. (Friedman)
Changing their behavior and ways will not get women to the top of the corporate
food chain; it will only fulfill the foolish idea that men are superior and
women have to be more like them to be successful. Although the fight for
equality for all women has a long road to travel, minds can be changed. One day
the corner office with the amazing view will be occupied by a woman and the
nameplate outside the door will read “President”. The Oscars will not be
categorized into actor or actress but rather Best Role. Also, the highest
political rank will be announced not Mr. President and the First Lady but Mrs.
President and the First Man. This will all take place not because women became
jerks and liars, but because the world changed its thinking.
Works Cited
Elsesser, Kim. "And the Gender-Neutral Oscar
Goes To....." America Now: Short Readings from Recent Periodicals .
Ed. Robert Antwan. Boston: Bedford/St.Martin's, 2011. 211.
Friedman, Ann. "Swagger Like Us." America Now:
Short Readings from Recent Periodicals . Ed. Robert Antwan. 9th . Boston:
Bedford/St.Martin's, 2011. 207.
Shirky, Clay. "A Rant About Women." America
Now:Short Readings from Recent Periodicals. Ed. Robert Antwan. 9th .
Boston: Bedford/St.Martin's, 2011. 201.
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