Gender Day

Oh Peru, I miss you already.

Like the title implies, today's classes were all about gender in different aspects of society. We talked a lot about marriage and occupation, and in what ways the implications differ for males and females. First off, I have never been more scared and reluctant about marriage. Here's the modern world's view: Marriage benefits men more than it does women, because men are mainly in charge of providing an income by working, which is something he would do married or not. Women, on the other hand, have much more diverse responsibilities having to do with housework and child care, and then many more women hold outside jobs nowadays. What's so inviting about laying down 20+ years of your life? (And that's just for one kid.) Should we be pursuing our interests more passionately at this time of life, when there is no particular one we need to be looking after? Selfish, yes. But this shattering of the fantasy "happily ever after" love story most likely has something to do with the very high rates of divorce in this country. What's realistic, and is it good? Note to self: don't marry someone with a secular view of marriage, whatever that entails.

Even Biblically, males exercise authority over females. I believe it to be natural, but sooner or later, I'm going to have to relinquish much of my independence, initiative, choice and leanings to serve another's. How did I get so independent in the first place? Is that even a good thing? Are even Christian parents still subscribing too much to American ideals?

Also, yes, everyone and their mom is fretting over internships nowadays, but as women, how much do we need to be building our careers by accumulating human capital (i.e. education, work experience, credentials, etc.)? Is it worth getting higher degrees if you are just going to settle down and raise kids for a few decades soon after? HM. Ok time to go to the next class, where we will be discussing gender in the classroom.