Working Women And Family Lifestyles Essays - Housewife, Marriage

Working Women And Family Lifestyles WORKING WOMEN AND FAMILY LIFESTYLES The issues and concerns of this course are ones with which I am able to identify. Having been married for eight years, a working women and mother qualifies me to give much insight to each of the components listed in this course. My essay will address the following: Past and present status of women in the work place Balancing career and family Career Choices The future of the family In addition, I will expand on the implications of single parenthood and how it affects womens careers and raising a family. PAST AND PRESENT STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE WORK PLACE Every day in some office, bank, store, school, or wherever women work, someone announces an engagement or a wedding. But unlike past generations, the announcement doesnt automatically mean the employee is leaving. She is just adding a new dimension to herself-marriage. Unlike her predecessor, she will work for a much longer period because she can decide when to begin her family. If she decides to have a family, her leave of absence is apt to be less than five years, because she is a member of the new breed of women who attempt to combine the roles of career woman, mother, and wife into a workable package. Wives have been working for a much longer period than most people think. Before the Industrial Revolution, even wealthy women worked long hours supervising the needs of large families, household servants, and slaves. Most American families engaged in farming then. Often husband and wife worked together in order to make a profit. During the time of the Revolutionary, women worked in the fields plowing and harvesting, because all males were away fighting the war. By the eighteenth century, women were employed in all occupations working side by side with men. This may sound unusual, but, in those days, all occupations were based in the home or at a nearby office or workshop. Women and children helped male family members build successful firms. The nineteenth century brought the beginning of a technical era with the center of economic activity moving away from the home into factories and offices. Most occupations came to be viewed then as unsuitable for women or incompatible with their chores in the home. Very few jobs remained that were considered appropriate for women. As a result, most upper and middle-class women left the work force. As the American population grew and the labor shortage eased, the opportunities for women became even fewer. By the nineteenth century, the practice of paying women less for the same job done by men was well-established. Just a glance at today's classified ads in any newspaper will refute the argument that a woman's place is in the home. In the past, women worked mostly out of necessity. But now, many women work because it is self-fulfilling. When I was a child, both my parents worked. During the eighteen years I lived with my parents, they earned MBAs and in my mothers case a Ph.D. I grew up believing that to be successful, I must go to college, establish a career, get married and have kids. It never occurred to me to be a housewife and stay home. I did go to college at eighteen but dropped out to get married at age twenty. I worked while my husband finished school. I wanted to wait to have children until I was in my later twentys and hopefully have the chance to finish school and establish a career. Life did not quite work that way. At twenty-one the first little, surprise bundle of joy came along. So by age twenty-two, I had a year old baby and was working full-time. I did not feel right about staying home. I did not think I would be respected. Four years later I had another baby girl. I continued to work but not climb any ladders to success partly because my husband moved every two years for his company and partly because I was not focused. I did not know what I wanted to be when I grew up and in my heart I wanted to be home with my babies, for awhile at least. I wanted the opportunity to further