Why Women Still Can T Have It All
With the rise of role confusion in society, the debates of gender inequality have become more frequent. As a result, people are becoming increasingly more concerned with how to repair the gap that an uncertain amount of time has created between men and women. The complication of finding ways to bridge the gap resides in the inability for majorities of each sex to see passed their biases. In the essay titled “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” former director of policy planning for the U.S. State Department Anne-Marie Slaughter speaks about the difficulty of balancing home and work life from a female’s perspective. In rebuttal of a portion of the claims Slaughter makes, Esquire magazine editor Richard Dorment states a male’s view on the
topic in his essay, “Why Men Still Can’t Have It All.” As a result of Dorment’s rebuttal, Slaugher revised the original argument and created “Can We ‘have it all’?”. In “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All?”, Slaughter states her main idea by saying, “I believe that we can ‘have it all at the same time.’ But not today, not with the way America’s economy and society are currently structured” (680). While Slaughter says “we,” it is evident that the intended audience for the essay is women. More specifically, women who wish to be successful in their career while maintaining a healthy balance between work and home life. Throughout the essay, Slaughter gives tips to help women balance their lives. As an example, she quotes former vice presidential counselor Mary Matalin, who wrote, “Having control over your schedule is the only way that women who want to have a career and a family can make it work” (681). After she quotes Matalin, Slaughter then gives advice to Americans by saying, “The best hope for improving the lot of all women, and foreclosing what Wolfers and Stevenson call a ‘new gender gap’- measured by well-being rather that wages- is to close the leadership gap: to elect a woman president and 50 women senators; to ensure that women are equally represented in the ranks of corporate executives and judicial leaders” (685). This idea implies that there are too many men in power and to equally represent women, the country must be run by a female president and have half of the senate seats reserved for women.
topic in his essay, “Why Men Still Can’t Have It All.” As a result of Dorment’s rebuttal, Slaugher revised the original argument and created “Can We ‘have it all’?”. In “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All?”, Slaughter states her main idea by saying, “I believe that we can ‘have it all at the same time.’ But not today, not with the way America’s economy and society are currently structured” (680). While Slaughter says “we,” it is evident that the intended audience for the essay is women. More specifically, women who wish to be successful in their career while maintaining a healthy balance between work and home life. Throughout the essay, Slaughter gives tips to help women balance their lives. As an example, she quotes former vice presidential counselor Mary Matalin, who wrote, “Having control over your schedule is the only way that women who want to have a career and a family can make it work” (681). After she quotes Matalin, Slaughter then gives advice to Americans by saying, “The best hope for improving the lot of all women, and foreclosing what Wolfers and Stevenson call a ‘new gender gap’- measured by well-being rather that wages- is to close the leadership gap: to elect a woman president and 50 women senators; to ensure that women are equally represented in the ranks of corporate executives and judicial leaders” (685). This idea implies that there are too many men in power and to equally represent women, the country must be run by a female president and have half of the senate seats reserved for women.