The Feminine Mystique: Chapter 1 “The Problem that Has No Name”
Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique begins with an introduction describing the problem that has no name, which is the prevalent unhappiness of women. Friedan offers some case studies about unhappy women from around the United States, and Friedan wonders whether this unhappiness is connected to the female role of housewife. Friedan describes the differences between the past three generations of women. Grandmothers, Suffrage Feminists, and Mothers. Media representation and women 's magazines nurture the image of the uneducated wife and mother who is content taking care of her family in a house which is equipped with modern technological appliances. Sometimes the media would describe the role of the woman as rewarding. Women have their education, they have worked,
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Women dropping out of college in comparison to men dropped from 47% in the 1920’s to 35% in the 1950’s. At the end of the 1950’s, twenty became the average age of women marrying in America. Friedan discussed how the ages were continuing to drop, and 14 million teenage girls were engaged by the age of 17. The women’s freedoms included choosing home furniture, appliances and the family car. Self and home care were supposed to provide the right amount of happiness for the woman. Friedan discusses the 15 years since the end of the Second World War shapes feminine mystique as the core of contemporary American culture. Women 's dream was to be perfect wives and mothers, and their main efforts were directed at acquiring material goals and maintaining them. According to Friedan, women in the 60’s gave little attention to what was going on outside of their home and neighborhood, and proudly Accepted their profession of "homemaker.” Daughters were getting married younger and younger, and only being educated until marriage. Dropping out of high school and college after finding a
With the beginnings of the cold war the media and propaganda machine was instrumental in the idea of the nuclear family and how that made America and democracy superior to the “evils” of the Soviet Union and Communism; with this in mind the main goal of the 50’s women was to get married. The women of the time were becoming wives in their late teens and early twenties. Even if a women went to college it was assumed that she was there to meet her future husband. Generally a woman’s economic survival was dependent on men and employment opportunities were minimal.
The “Feminine Mystique” is a highly influential book in the early second wave feminism movement. It is said that it helped shaped the demands of the second wave by insisting for the right to work outside the home, and to be paid equally; the right for reproductive freedom; the demand that women should not be expected to have children and be mothers if they do not want to. Betty Friedan addresses “the problem that has no name” which is the women who are highly educated, suburban housewives that are bored and want something “more” in their life. This is the point where women knew we needed a second wave. Women’s role had gone backwards and they were beginning to realize that they were all experiencing the same “problem that has no name”. “The
Throughout the early history of our nation, it was apparent that females were expected to abide by certain cultural and societal norms. Females were often tied to a male member, whether it was their father, husband, or male relative, the mere identity of a female has always been attached to a male figure (Connell, 2003). Due to these gender roles, women have consistently battled with gender inequality. Often times, women were subjected to stay at home, bear children, raise them, and take care of their husband. Assumed gender roles have led society to assume and expect that women were not allowed to do the same things as men. These patriarchal ideas have constrained and restricted women heavily in society (Glick, 2001). Mass media, television, and many other aspects of society have consistently reinforced patriarchal notions and the idea of different roles for men and women (McCarthy,
The era of the 1950s was an iconic era in American history. The American dream of freedom, self empowerment, and success was growing. After world war 1, the ideals of american culture changed. The country saw the aftermath of the war in the countries of western Europe where communism was beginning to take hold, and the U.S tried to be the opposite. Marriage was propagated to be the opposite of the war torn families across the world, where women were working in factories and children fending for themselves with no home. The American “nuclear family” strived to be one where the father supported his family, the wife stayed home and provided for her children. Family became a national priority, and women were taught that a happy marriage and home
During WWII, women took over the work force, and had such inspirations as Rosie the Riveter. This created a generation of women who wanted more out of life than birthing children, and keeping a nice home for their husband. The end of the war, however, brought with it a decrease of working women. In the 1950’s the rate of working women had slightly rebounded to 29% following the post-war decrease in 1945. These women were well rounded, working outside the home, and still having dinner on the table by 5PM.
The social perception of women has drastically changed since the 1950’s. The social role of women during the 1950’s was restrictive and repressed in many ways. Society during that time placed high importance on expectations of behavior in the way women conducted themselves in home life as well as in public. At home the wife was tasked with the role of being an obedient wife, caring mother, and homemaker. Women publicly were expected to form groups and bond over tea with a slice of cake. All the while government was pushing this idealize roll for women in a society “dominated” by men. However, during this time a percentage of women were finding their way into the work force of men. “Women were searching their places in a society led by men;
The era of I love Lucy, Leave it to Beaver and Father knows Best, brought about a time where family values were necessary, family life was wonderful and no one was worrying about politics and the Cold War. These families had the molds of women constrained in the home, men bringing home the bacon and all in the homes of white middle class families. Women in the 1950s were often depicted as dependent on men and were encouraged to get married young. (Bloom and Breines, 6) It took large media input from movie stars like Marilyn Monroe, to influence many women to join the workforce and reject the “traditional feminine roles”. (Bloom and Breines 6) This mold would be challenged by the introduction of the Birth Control pill in 1954 and the growing unhappiness of women who would seek to break the walls that trapped their mothers. (Bloom and Breines, 5) More women would venture out of the homes and into the workplace between the two decades, “from 25 percent in 1950to 32 percent in 1960”. (Bloom and Breines, 5) The introduction of the Birth Control pill allowed for women to avoid unwanted pregnancies or even marriages and encouraged the sexual liberation that would be seen in the sixties.
Betty Friedan is the author of the famous book, which credited the beginning of a second –wave feminism in the United States. Friedan’s book begins with describing “the problem that has no name” to women who had everything, but were unhappy, depress and felt like they had nothing. Women are expected to be happy by buying things, a new refrigerator, house, best-selling coffee, having the right make-up, clothes and shoes, this is what the Feminine Mystique symbolized. Something that women wanted but can never have. Furthermore, society in present day is full of advertisements everywhere we go in TV, books and on the radio. The young generation as well as adults get trap in a fantasy world full of perfection. Women always want to have a thin waist, the most expensive make-up and purses, it’s all based on stereotypes. In her book, Friedan mentions that the average age of marriage was decreasing compared to increasing birthrate of women. Moreover, Friedan has been nit-pick at for focusing on the middle-class women and for prejudice against
Women were expected to be nurturing, proper, and obedient. When men wanted their wives and daughters to stay home, the women had no choice but to cooperate, “The growing separation between the workplace and the home sharpened distinctions between the social roles of men and women” (Brinkley 240). As the separation between the home and the workplace began to grow, the shift in gender roles became more evident in society. Additionally, a new culture for women emerged from this shift in society, “Within their own separate sphere, middle-class women began to develop a distinctive female culture. A ‘lady’s’ literature began to emerge” (Brinkley 240). This newfound female culture gave women a sense of connection to other women with lifestyles. In some ways, this shift in gender roles was not completely harmful to women. However, women were still considered to be inferior to
Women were supposed to be housewives who were to stay home and take care of the children and home. Over the years, this idea did not settle well with women and caused them to revolt and become liberated. The ideological and institutional constraints of 1950s American society left a significant impact on the construction of women and their identifies during this time period (Holt). During these years, the idea of Rosie the Riveter arose, which caused women to become more liberated. Women during this time period achieved independence, which caused the ideas of the 1950s woman to become even more harmful to the construction of women and their identity within society. The 1960s was a time of growth for women. It was a period of liberating experiences. For a part of this decade, women were in the work force, doing things that they felt were beneficial to themselves and society. “In an era marked by quiescence of organized feminism and the celebration of domesticity by public figures and popular culture, increasing numbers of women are seeking employment outside the home” (Meyerlwitz,1994). Women were able to make a lasting contribution to society and their homes, which helped to diminish some of the stereotypes that existed. Women during this time were educated at a high rate than years past, many of them were in fields that they had never imagined working in before or classified as
A house is not a home if no one lives there. During the nineteenth century, the same could be said about a woman concerning her role within both society and marriage. The ideology of the Cult of Domesticity, especially prevalent during the late 1800’s, emphasized the notion that a woman’s role falls within the domestic sphere and that females must act in submission to males. One of the expected jobs of a woman included bearing children, despite the fact that new mothers frequently experienced post-partum depression. If a woman were sterile, her purposefulness diminished. While the Cult of Domesticity intended to create obliging and competent wives, women frequently reported feeling trapped or imprisoned within the home and within societal expectations put forward by husbands, fathers, and brothers.
Betty Friedan’s book, The Feminine Mystique, explains the mind set of society in the 1960s. She writes that the women of the ‘60s were identified only as creatures looking for “sex, babies, and home” (Friedan 36). She goes on to say “The only passion, the only pursuit, the only goal a woman [was] permitted [was] the pursuit of a man” (Friedan 36). This mind set, this “feminine mystique,” is clearly shown throughout the show Mad Men. The side effect of the feminine mystique hurt all the women of this time. Matthew Weiner shows how this conception of the “ideal woman” hurt all of his lead women. The consequences are shown in the two women who bought into the idea, Betty and Joan, and the one who re...
Throughout history when a girl is born, it wasn’t received as a blessing. Many cultures see this as a curse. A girl’s anatomy seemed to be her destiny as Freud once said. A girl is born with the burden of being simply a woman. Betty Friedan experienced being a woman in the middle class suburbs of America. And although it did not discuss the struggles of all women, it did give us a glimpse of a particular group of women and their struggles as housewives and mothers. In the book, Friedan describes the injustices women faced when they were forced to go back home after the war. The short lived freedom of being able to achieve a college education and put it to good use was swept away from them. Forcing them back to their homes and hypnotizing them
During the 18th and 19th century, patriarchy has been responsible for designing women’s role in society. Throughout history, men have been deemed as superior while women have been regarded as inferior. Society has this ideology that women are the sole laborers of a household; they were not granted the same privileges as men. In addition, women have been negatively affected by stereotyping. Women have been portrayed on television as being submissive to men. The depiction of women on television portrays the implications of a societal view of women. From a man's perspective, an ideal woman is a housewife who does all the household duties herself. However, over the years, studies have shown that gender roles have slowly advanced. Women began to challenge the traditional gender roles, and they expect that men share employment as well as tending to the household and children. The traditional roles that women were expected to play is now an ideology of the past. There is a double standard set between men and women. Women have come a long way; women began to enter the work force in jobs that men held previously. They have also changed their appearance, attitude and how they are viewed by people. Therefore, women are not to be viewed as inferior. Consequently, women went from being submissive to being assertive, influential, and successful individuals.