Learned About Becoming A Stay-At-Home Mom By Denise Mcallister

In today’s economy, it is a hard fact that many women will have to enter the workforce. In her article for The Atlantic, “Why Women Still Can’t have it All”, Anne-Marie Slaughter examines the difficulties faced by women who either have children or would someday like to do so. Having given up on the task of holding a high powered government position while being the mother of a teenager, her kairotic moment, the author discusses the changes that would be necessary in order for women to find a real work-life balance. Although Slaughter 's target audience is primarily women who seek high powered positions, the article contains ample information that should appeal to both men who seek to balance the needs of a growing family with their work responsibilities, as well as workplace policy makers who could help usher in the necessary changes. Her goal in sharing her experiences is to argue that women can succeed at the very top level of their organizations, “But not today, not with the way America’s economy and society are currently structured” (Slaughter).

In Judith Stadtman Tuckers “The Least Worst Choice: Why Mothers Opt out of the Work Place” Judith Stadtman Tucker looks at why hard working, intelligent woman are choosing to leave their high end jobs to stay at home with their children. Judith Stadtman Tucker expresses her option that it is nearly impossible to work 40 hours a week, be available on your off hours as well as raise children. I fully agree with Judith Stadtman Tucker’s point of view that it is absurd to have to be at the mercy of your employer even in your off hours, nor less if you are attempting to create an emotional connection and successfully raise a child. It is no question that even in today’s modern society that it is assumed that woman are the best caregivers for young children. If you are put in a position where you have a child to raise, is it more appropriate to abandon your career or to emotionally abandon your child to a stranger or strangers and allow them to raise it? Judith Stadtman Tuckers argument against mothers having to choose between the joys of parenthood and the freedom of being able to work a career really speaks to me because it makes me consider what I want for my own future and what I would choose.

In her interviews with woman she was sure to interview very well educated women and those that strived for mere perfection. One thing is that the men in the lives of these women were not supportive and not mentioned of much. The men and society of today have placed a lot of responsibility on a woman’s shoulders when it comes to the child. It is the woman who makes the decision or is given the task to make the heavy decisions regarding the child’s future. Because of this many women choose to stay at home to be sure that the children will receive everything that they deserve and that they are not lacking in any area. Another issue that she reviews is that employers do not work with moms at all. For example she talked about the scenario where two moms brought a solution to their problem to management yet it failed to receive approval instead one mother was offered more money (Guest, 2011). Employers are not very flexible when it comes to mothers and don’t provide the proper care that is needed for a child. Since men are the ones that don’t carry the responsibility of the child’s well-being having proper day care is not a factor for them. Then there is the cost of day care which is high and can at times not compare to what the individual is making.

In the reading, “From the Second Shift: Working Parents and the Revolution at Home”, Hochschild explains her experience conducting a case study with a series of different women to get their perceptions of their lives as mothers, but also working women. Moreover, she provides good information to start her study. She reports that in 1950, 30 percent of American women were in the labor force, 28 percent of married women with children worked out of home. Today, those numbers have dramatically increased. During her findings, she saw that women felt a responsibility to be able to balance work and life at home, focused more on children, and expressing how overworked or tired they felt. Whereas men in this study expressed that women did most of the work around the house and childcare. In addition, what stood out to me in this reading was that some men felt pleased that their wives received more income than them. For instance, in an interview a man expressed, “was more pleased than threatened by her

Suzanne Bianchi, John Robinson and Melissa Milkie’s Changing Rhythms of American Family Life were able to document that “mothers are spending as much time with the children as forty years ago, fathers were doing more at home and there is more gender equality” (Bianchi et al 2006, 169). In their data it showed the trend of workloads for both fathers and mothers to have increased “from 55 to 64 estimated weekly hours between 1965 and 2000 households with married parents” (Bianchi et al 2006, 171). This could attributed to that there was a big change that occurred that allowed more women and mothers to enter the workforce. Corresponding to the female participants in my sample that want to continue to work and further their career. Furthermore,

Today approximately 13. 7 million single parents in America with 82.2% of them being single mothers as told by Time Magazine, these mothers all somewhat attempt to make ends meet even though women earn 30% less money than men. This derives from the lingering opinion that women are less able to conduct work than men or the opinion that women should solely be kept at home as housewives, cooking and cleaning. However, single mothers ranging from Mary Ann Moore, who works 10 hour shifts to help support her four children, to Angel Gordan mother of six who has no job, these women find ways to make ends meet. Women carry in their bodies’ the future minds of America. They labor

When looking at women who left their careers to stay home and raise children, “[a Wharton Business School] study revealed that 43% of the women surveyed stayed out the workforce longer than they expected, and 87”% of those who initially never planned to return to work changed their minds, whether due to economic pressures or a reawakened desire for professional challenge” (Young, 47). Many women in these situations are forced to justify their time away from the professional world and their previous work experience is

Gilberts concludes that the nation (United States) is neutral to the question “Should moms stay at home" (85). It is a choice; there are policies for the women with children that would like to work. These policies "...give equal consideration to the diverse values that influence how women

Stephanie Coontz, author of “Why Gender Inequality Stalled,” emphasizes on how women are still challenged in today’s society about inequality of women wanting to have a career and raising a family instead of staying at home to care for her family. Women making the choice to have a baby and have a career is often frowned upon. According to Coontz, “when they become mothers, they face more scrutiny and prejudice on the job than fathers do” (7). In a two family household, mothers often have to take off work to care for their children in case of emergencies than fathers do. In single household families, mothers are full time parents and have a full time job.

In her article, “A Mother’s Day Kiss-Off”, Leslie Bennetts describes the problem of how our culture depicts the typical mother as a stay-at-home mom and how mothers respond to that problem. She begins her argument by commenting on how Mother’s Day will come but pass leaving mothers to go back to their excessive responsibilities. She critiques the weight our culture imposes on mothers because raising children is still viewed as the mother’s job. Bennetts draws attention to the flaws in our society that prevent women from following their dreams because of motherhood.

Gerson, K. (1985) Hard Choices: How Women Decide about Work, Career, and Motherhood. Los Angeles: University of California Press.

I realized how important it is to surround yourself with people who love and support you unconditionally. During the 1990’s 60% of mothers that had children under 5 were still balancing the role of having a job and being a mom. During this time motherhood while having a job was not fully supported and everyone just suggested the mother stay home. However, Laura Sessions conquered both, with her husband behind her every step of the way. “The

Women in contemporary American society see their role as provider as part of their obligation. Almost seventy-one percent of women with children are in the workforce (U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010). Currently, there are more mothers who are working outside the home than there are who are

During this last century societal views towards women have drastically changed, from being looked at as a homemaker, to a businesswoman, to a mother, and now a working mother. One thing that hasn’t changed through the years is how women are critiqued for what they do and how they do it. If a woman takes care of the house she’s lazy and doesn't use her potential. If a women works in the office more than she’s at home she doesn’t connect with her family enough. The latest judgement women are facing: are working mothers better mothers. Today, women are being put against each other to be viewed as the “better mother” just by looking at their profession.

Modern moms in western culture have a much different role to play than simply caring for their children and their house. According to statistics Canada, 72.9% of women with children under the age of 16 are participating in the workforce. This means that women have adapted a new role where they must balance work, social, and home life and face significant consequences if they are unable to succeed. However, this role shift is almost expected of women in our culture. With such a great majority of women in the workforce, those who have chosen to remain at home are questioned on their decision and criticized by their peers for not being an “independent women”. The idea of the modern mom is glorified in our society, but I’m asking you to