Why Men And Women Still Can T Have It All Analysis

‘Why men and women still can't have it all?’, a question battling the gender odds in many aspects and a question that is yet to be discussed. In her 2012 article, "Why Women Still Can't Have It All?", Anne- Marie Slaughter a successful career-oriented woman discusses her struggle in being away from her family while working in Washington and the reasons behind women not having it all. After she left her job as the Director of Policy Planning at the State Department, she returned home with the desire to be with her family leading her to write the article. On the other hand, Richard Dorment in his article, "Why Men Still Can't Have It All?", also explains that men go through the same boat as women do and highlights his opinions on Slaughter's
This at least depended on the type of job, "… the hard truth: having it all was not possible in many types of jobs, including high government office at least not for very long." (Slaughter 681) Higher level jobs call for more responsibilities, which is highly demanding and time-consuming unless you have the option to control your schedule when you have a career and a family. Slaughter provides three examples of highly educated, well-off, and successful career-oriented women who gave up their position just to spend more time with their family. Because their jobs were highly demanding, they chose to step down from the position of power for a meantime and value their family over their career. Dorment, comparatively, points out that a high-pressure, high-power, high-paying job often forces us to make unacceptable sacrifices for the rest of your life. So, to prevent it from happening, he suggests the freedom of making our own choices. "If you don't want a high-pressure, high-power, high-paying job that forces you to make unacceptable sacrifices in the rest of your life, don't take the job." (Dorment
“Giving workers the ability to integrate their non-work lives with their work — whether they spend that time mothering or marathoning — will open the door to a much wider range of influences and ideas.” (Slaughter 692) First, it is the freedom of choice. Slaughter and Dorment corroborate this theory by stating that men and women have the choice of the type or tempo of work. Either to work full time or part time, may it be in a high demanding or a second-rate job, it all depends on the individual. A choice to be a breadwinner or a caregiver in a family, and a choice to do both. He notably mentions equality: the same access to men and women in the array of choices in a workplace or household. Another key point is flexibility and balance which plays a vital role in maintaining a stable work-family life. "Seeking out a more balanced life is not a women's issue; balance would be great for us all." (Slaughter 688) Slaughter emphasizes the importance of valuing family just as much as work. As flexibility increases in a work environment, chances to perform better are highly correlated with positive "job engagement, job satisfaction, employee retention, and employee health." (Slaughter 690) On behalf of the men, Dorment voices out that as time changes, men should do whatever it takes to do their fair share at home and work. He uses himself as an exemplar; he and his wife