Response to 'Stratifying by Sex'

In Kessler-Harris' "Stratifying by Sex: Understanding the History of Working Women," there is a footnote at the bottom of the first page in which the author reflects back, from the present, to when she first wrote it. She explains, "I note how much has changed in the structure of the labor market-as well as what has remained the same." This essay was first published in 1975, which accounts for the conclusion stating, "A few jobs are being opened up to women, and occasionally wages are being equalized...on the whole, women's wages have not risen comparably to those of men" (115). Obviously, in 2009 things have changed, thus the opportunity for her footnote. And that is exactly what I found myself thinking about mostly when I read the essay: how time has changed society. Kessler-Harris brings us all the way from Puritanical America to the 1970s, and I find it so easy to judge and dismiss "naive" and "unfair" societal norms such as the repression of women in the workplace. However, upon further reflection, I really wonder that if I had been born in that time, would I have considered being unequal to men normal and gotten on with it? If so (and I hope so much that this wouldn’t be the case), what am I accepting today that isn't fair? It reminds me of when my mom told me about how she hung out with a group of expat-wives when my dad was transferred to work in Tokyo. She explained that there was one husband who tagged along with the group of wives because his own wife was stationed in Tokyo for business. He was a home-maker, giving him time and opportunity to hang out with this group of women who were in the same situation as him. Why not? Well, depending on how one feels about that story, I don’t think women and men have been able to become fully equal yet. There is still stigma against men as home-makers and, although women who work for a living might not be stigmatized, I still think the ideal for women is to not have to work. Will this ever change? Should it ever change?