by TON70
Historically women and mothers have been and encouraged their daughters to live guarded lives. By guarded lives I mean not allowing love to determine the best husband, showing care with whom we associated, not allowing ourselves to find ourselves alone with men to whom we were not betrothed or married.
My mother exhibited similar actions with me. And I confess to doing the same with out daughters. These actions, though appearing outdated and limiting in modern times held a purpose, ever how misguided and unjust some of them were and remain.
The idea of protecting women, though have been presented under the guise of women are weak and need protecting carefully hid the what I believe is the unwitting knowledge that men and other women of the past knew that we are just now, with the reality of women possessing choice to have children, realizing.
Men need women to give men immortality. In today’s world where women possess and are exerting the right not to give birth and become mothers, many men face the possibility that no one of their bloodline will continue into the future.
Who they are and what they were and are about will fade into the oblivion of history.
Those who forget their history often repeat past mistakes, and, if lucky, live to regret their lack of memory. Moreover this evidences the need to remember and that the power of history lies in there being an adequate number of people living who possess the choice to remember.
Women and choice form a powerful experience and concept. I cannot imagine a life lacking either.
My parents never encouraged me to marry and in fact as I found out after my father’s death in May 1995, my Dad hated all my boyfriends. No man could be good enough for his daughter. My parents Mantra was to get my education and get a “Good Job”. I have to admit all during my 20s, 30s and early 40s I was a free spirit. I was involved in a common law marriage but that ended after seven years.
Women born in the 50s and 60s are what I would call the First Generation of Choice. Unlike my mother and grandmother I did not and was not forced to find safety, financial stability or fulfillment in marriage. I had options my mother could only dream about. Now on the other side of the coin during these past few years of economic hardship I’ve often wished I had a mate or partner to ease some of the burden but I also need given my independent spirit and personality I would have chafed under the constraints of being a wife.
I attended from Marymount Manhattan College which was an All Women’s Catholic college at one point. They started to admit men right before I graduated. We had plenty of classes on Feminism and I remember seeing a film and reading a short story called The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Now this story written around the time of the Gilded Age deals with an upper class woman but the theme of shattered dreams, being taken for granted or not taken seriously because you’re woman resonates with women of many classes. Here is the link: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/1952/1952-h/1952-h.htm
DeBorah Ann Palmer´s last blog post ..A Powerful Share From My Recovery Pal “Trey”~We All Start Somewhere Right?