The Role Of Women

“Ms.” and “Mrs.” are terms that have forever defined women and their economic status in our society by belittling their existing to only a simple term. Throughout all of the women’s rights movements and advances, why not redefine these terms and what they represent? Women are often defined by their marital status. This is a common misconception we have even now in the twenty first century. The terms “Ms.” and “Mrs.” show us the role a woman plays in a household and usually shields the idea of them having a role outside of the household. It is not unheard of for a woman to keep her maiden name even after marrying, however it is extremely rare. Approximately ninety percent of women change their last names to match that of their husband. As described

According to Filipovic, “It lessens the belief that our existence is valuable unto itself, and that as individuals we are already whole. It disassociates us from ourselves…” Changing a woman’s last name after marriage can lessen her self esteem or make her believe she is only important as a wife or a bride but not as a single woman. Within the past few centuries, women have been permitted to vote, get an education, and even join the armed forces. These critical advances for women’s rights have all been for nothing if we are still to be defined as either “a man’s property” or “not a man’s property” by the terms “Mrs.” and “Ms.” Women make up more than fifty percent of our country’s population, and more than forty nine percent of the workforce. With that being said, women should feel a deeper value to their last name and carry it with a sense of pride because we, as women have made such an impact on society. Women should not let a marital status or classifying term diminish the years of effort we have put in to make our voices heard

However, it has been proven that women take their education and careers more seriously than a man would. Us women generally try harder to establish a name for ourselves, simply to prove that we are so much more than a housewife. Women must be defined not only by their actions and roles within the household, but by their roles in a society apart from their household. Recently same-sex marriage has been legalized throughout the United States, which Filipovic states “will challenge the idea that there are naturally different roles for men and women within the marital unit.” A same sex couple will have different roles within the marital unit than a husband and a wife. For example, if two women decide to get married, perhaps both of them will work, perhaps only one, but that choice is up to those women and will not be influenced by society’s opinion of what they should or should not do. Also, if the women decide to take a different last name, they will have the luxury of deciding what name to take based on their relationship, not based on society’s misconception that the woman must take the man’s last