In a recent opinion piece posted on the Fox News website, Suzanne Venker argues that women have declared a “war on men.” She begins by stating that men no longer find a successful marriage to be an important goal in their lives. We’ve all heard women complain about how hard it is to find a “good man” to date or marry. Venker views this complaint in a different light, claiming that it is men who can’t find a “good woman.”
She backs this argument by discussing the change of roles that women play in society today:
“Much of the coverage has been in response to the fact that for the first time in history, women have become the majority of the U.S. workforce. They’re also getting most of the college degrees. The problem? This new phenomenon has changed the dance between men and women.”
The word that stands out most to me in this statement is “problem.” She immediately brings a negative light to the rising power of women. She then declares that the reason men are not looking to marry is simply because, “women aren’t women anymore.” Despite the blatant offensiveness of this statement, she is suggesting that there is a clear definition of what it means to be a woman, and apparently, women aren’t adhering to it.
Our generation has been fortunate enough to grow up with strong women role models like Beyonce, Oprah, Michelle Obama, Hilary Clinton, and Condoleezza Rice. In my mind, they define what it means to be a woman, if there is such a definition. Venker belittles the progress that women have made in our society by claiming that “women pushed men off their pedestal (women had their own pedestal, but feminists convinced them otherwise) and climbed up to take what they were taught to believe was rightfully theirs. Now the men have nowhere to go.” The advancements that women have made in our society have done anything but push men further back. Women still earn only $0.77 to every $1.00 a man earns. She also insinuates that women’s “pedestal” in society consists of “womanly duties”, and that is where they are meant to stay. Who says that women and men cannot share the “pedestal”?
Overall, Venker is suggesting that women keep to their own domain of child bearing and caring for the home if they wish to find a husband. This article offended and diminished the progression that woman before us have made in woman’s rights. A woman is not defined by her ability to find a husband, have children, or be a “good wife.” I hope that our generation will see past these stigmas and continue to redefine what it means to be a woman today.