The life of women in Ancient Rome – Part 2
Right from the early days of Roman civilization, through the days of the Republic followed by Augustus’ empire, Roman women, unlike the Athenian women before them, are recorded as constant companions and helpers of their husbands. Julius Caesar, in the Republican era, had 4 wives; Cassutia (wife of 4 months), Cornelia, Pompeia and finally Calpurnia. We know details of all of them. In other words, a prominent male figure was accompanied by his wife in public. Roman women, in ancient Rome, in contrast with Athenian women, had a “measure” of equality with Roman men. Little changed for women from the 9th century B.C. to the 5th century A.D., when the Roman Empire fell in 476A.D.
Roman women were free to dine with their husbands, attend parties, Roman public baths and religious festivals. Lower class women could get enough education to run a business at the markets or to be dressmakers. Unlike the Athenian women, all Roman women had citizenship, but had no right to vote in the Republican period. In the preceding period of monarchy and the following period of empire, the ruler had the final say in elections. However, that is not to say women had no interest in politics. Inscriptions dated 1st century A.D., uncovered in Pompeii, reveal politically minded, maybe active women. One found on the side of a wine shop reads:
“Caprasia along with Nymphius – her neighbors too – ask you to vote for Aulus Vettius Firmus for the aedileship; he is worthy of the office.” www.moyak.com
Terentia, wife of the orator Cicero, is recorded as having her own wealth and investing in property. But that was the exception rather than the rule. The average woman was always connected to the wealth, (or lack thereof), of her father. And here is where any real equality between the sexes in ancient Roman society begins to crumble. Roman women could not have personal names. Their father’s middle name was feminized. In fact, their father could force them to divorce or sell them into slavery.
And while the companionship in marriage may look all sweet on the outside, inside was another, darker story. Ultimately, women were daughter, wife, child-bearer and mother prioritized in that order. Upper class women were expected to have more babies than lower class women because their status had the wealth to support them. Girls were married by the age of 12; sometimes they were younger. All women were expected to teach their children Roman culture. If the marriage dissolved, the woman had
Should US companies be required to provide equal pay to women and men? – Part 56
Men and women should receive equal pay based on their abilities and performance. Unfortunately, the AFL/CIO web site states that while “Equal Pay” has been the law according to the Equal Pay Act since 1963, women on average still make only $.77 of every $1.00 that a man earns for an equivalent position.
As more women become equal or primary wage earners in the household, the demand for equal pay will become tantamount. Pay must reflect skill set and performance in all cases or we will have a less competitive workforce relative to other countries. Smart capable women who could be leaders may chose to “sit out” the competition for top positions if they feel they do not have equal opportunity.
The problem, of course, is the individual case rather than the aggregate. If you are a woman working in a position at the same skill level as a man and performing at the same level or above, what is your recourse for determining whether you are being paid fairly? Most hard-working women are focused on being successful rather than uncovering pay inequities or pursuing legal action as a result of perceived differences in compensation.
The path to resolution needs to be straightforward and transparency needs to exist in some way in order for pay inequities, regardless of gender, race or religion, are to be eliminated. The question is whether this is a feasible or implementable mandate for US companies, both large and small.
Wild teen girls: Dangerous lifestyle patterns – Part 2
Drugs. Promiscuity. Alcohol. Pregnancy. Each of these words is enough to send a bolt of fear though every parent’s heart. Yet with changing family values, increased demands and a whole assortment of new stresses, every parent of a teenaged daughter will eventually have to deal with this. Before you can accurately handle these situations, it is important to learn what’s behind this new lifestyle of young females.
The changing family structure is having a severe impact on the development of young women today. Twenty years ago we’d find a mother staying at home with her children, raising them with the care and devotion expected of them. These days you’re more likely to find the children planted in front of a television, with maybe a nanny or child sitter watching over them. Both parents will be off at work, attempting to earn enough to keep the family afloat.
Young women are now increasingly expected to match, or even out perform their fellow male classmates in school. This is causing an increase in stress, as teenaged girls are being taught that they need to best other students for the chance to attend a university or get a high paying job. Yet the result of these higher expectations is that more students than ever appear giving up and failing. Both teachers and parents display an attitude implying that you either win, or you fail. There’s no longer a middle ground, which unfortunately is where the majority of teenagers tend to be; so young girls, seeing that they’re not going to “win” will give up.
Both changing family values and higher expectations are leading young women to make choices the may not have ordinarily made. Drugs and alcohol quickly becomes an outlet for stress and fear. When intelligence is perceived to fail, young girls will fall back on what they consider their next redeeming asset: their bodies. Sex is something that is readily bartered, whether in hopes of attention, grades, money or drugs, it is an “easy” way for girls to get what they need. Which can then lead to obsessive compulsions about body image; anorexia runs rampant throughout high schools and universities, with diet pills and binging becoming the only way to achieve the body they “need” to get by. Many young girls will ruin their lives, their bodies or their mind with these dangerous habits leading to a growing issue that needs to be addressed in American society.
Reflections: Predicting major changes in culture and lifestyle
With emphasis on style and grace people will change the world in which we live. Our culture has not ever remained static for very long. Looking back at our history, we can see where events changed the direction of our culture, in other words, we judge the past defined by the outcome we can measure. We usually refer to this phenomenon as 20/20 hindsight.
Amidst the passing reflections, there lingers an interesting question. Can we predict major changes in the culture and/or lifestyle? We should see some of the future in the present, but how can we grasp the growing strength of the various aspects of change? It is certainly clear that each generation produces music that differentiates it from the generation before it. Ask any parent, and they will tell you about the unearthly sound of the music their kids love. Music does pass from generation to generation but it is adored unevenly in the general population.
Eventually, the musical landscape is changed by the youngest and most prolific producers of new and engaging sounds. However, it does not always modify the music that came before it. The list of wondrous and uplifting music just keeps on growing. Music does reflect changes in the culture and lifestyle of the younger generation, which tend to polarize from their parents in order to sustain and define themselves. So then we can look at the last fifty years and with hindsight determine each generation according to the menu of music they produced.
Therefore, it seems logical to expect this trend to continue, and with technology assisting them, we can predict there will be new and unusual musical forms yet to come. This is clearly happening in the gaming community where “modding” or the remix of existing games has become commonplace. There is a “remix” phenomenon in the marketing community as well. So then, we can predict there will be more of this kind of thing, where an existing item will be reinvented and presented as something novel and new. This is counterproductive to our copyright laws, and is but a small notation in the progress and change we measure.
So then, we can predict change in lifestyle and culture. Because we can discover new patterns and imagine new outcomes, does not mean we can micromanage the full spectrum of influence.
America is always in the midst of change. It was clear in the late nineteen fifties and sixties that the young men and women were taking more time out of their lives to protest governmental policies. We saw Beatniks playing chess and expressing their poetic views in San Francisco and New York, and then, overnight, there were the Hippies. Suddenly, profound changes in our culture and lifestyle were brewing everywhere.
It does seem Americans are very good at flexing their lifestyle and cultural muscle. With the current influx of people from many different places, we will continue on our national journey of becoming.
Should US companies be required to provide equal pay to women and men? – Part 68
The days of paying, promoting, or hiring on the basis of gender, age, race, religion, or any criterion other than performance are over. Education, experience, job performance, and yes, bargaining for higher pay should be considered, but not gender.
As a woman, I take exception to the fact that I would ever be hired, fired, given a raise, or given a promotion based on my gender. That is a condescending approach which is frankly offensive and degrading. It is also an archaic way of thinking. The “old boy network” of several decades ago would have concluded that because an employee is a woman, or of a minority race, she (or he) would not be capable of achieving a higher position or higher pay without the help from the man in charge, who was traditionally white. Obviously, this is not true.
So, pay should only be based on performance. Raises should be given as if the person doling them out was wearing a blindfold except as pertains to performance. If someone is doing a good job, they should be rewarded. That being said, however, it is absolutely crucial to note that many women still find it hard to ask for a raise even if they believe their performance warrants more money. Women also have a difficult time negotiating for a higher salary upon being hired.
If there is still a discrepancy in pay rates for men and women doing the same job with the same experience and performance, its cause may lie in the fact that societal norms don’t (won’t? can’t?) allow women on the whole to demand and expect the equality without being perceived in a harsh light. Unless this type of stereotyping ceases, it may never be possible to gain the salary equality that women’s organizations seek.
Companies in the US should NOT be required to continue hiring based on quotas or through affirmative action programs. Laws are in effect to banish prejudicial treatment in hiring practices. The only thing that should change in order to even the playing field is to use more enforcement of the current laws and to expose behavior that is not up to par with what our society expects – fairness for all people.
Living unconventional lifestyles – Part 6
So as not to impose a negative meaning on the term, I think it is important to establish that the term unconventional is in reference to the modern day production line society that we have come accustomed to viewing as “conventional.” I would consider myself to be a member of several different subcultures of society, so I think I know a thing or two about living an unconventional lifestyle.
To start with, myself and my husband both choose to live a vegan lifestyle. This means that we choose to abstain from eating or using animals and their byproducts in any way. As you would imagine, this affects more facets of our life than just our diet. Our clothing, our shampoo, our household cleaners, even our mattress all have to pass the cruelty-free test. Many might wonder why it is that we go so far. Why not just be vegetarian and be satisfied with that? Well, if I choose not to eat the cow that was subjected to less than humane conditions because I feel it is immoral, but I drink the milk from that same cow, I am still supporting the industry that slaughters the cow. I am allowing for the slaughter of that same cow through my patronage to the dairy industry. The same idea extends to all other areas of my life that might be subject to animal byproducts. If this is not unconventional, I truly do not know what is.
My husband and I are also both heavily tattooed and reap many dirty looks in the grocery store because of it. I think, in most cases, being unconventional comes with a complimentary set of thick skin. I can’t say that there are not times that I don’t feel the urge to lash out at the little old lady giving me a dirty look in the canned food aisle, but most of the time I just smile instead. It seems to confuse and anger them more, as if I had single-handedly destroyed their stereotype of what kind of people have tattoos. I can’t help but giggle at my menial accomplishment. If nothing else, it has made me laugh, and that is enough for me.
Every movement in history started with an unconventional idea. The Emancipation Proclamation, women’s suffrage, the Civil Rights movement: all of these moments in our history were inspired by the unconventional ideas of their time. Now, I am not saying that I think the fact that I have tattoos is going to create some defining moment in history, but I do find it comforting to look back on these times and see that conventional does not always mean right.
All in all, I think it is just important to worry about making yourself and those you care about happy, whether or not that is what June and Ward Cleaver would do. I don’t have time to worry myself over whether or not I am complying to society’s standards of normalcy, nor do I have any interest in doing so. It’s easy to stand up for what you believe in when your idea is the same as everyone else’s. Staying true to my beliefs in the midst of adversity is what makes my beliefs so strong.
Should US companies be required to provide equal pay to women and men? – Part 75
Though companies have the right to have free reign over their employees, as well as the company itself, there does need to be government guidance at times. There are laws made to protect the working man for reasons. We do not live within a country where applying for a job is equivalent to striving to become a slave of some sort. Yet, often, we find that we must need a bit of oversight from the powers that be to get he things that we are entitled to. Equal pay is one of them. Two people doing the same job, no matter the race, nor the gender, should receive equal pay.
I am fortunate enough to be employed by a wonderful company with very good benefits. My company is fair, and generous, though I suspect are guilty of this very crime. Within my department alone there are several people, some that have quite a bit more tenure than others, and most of us are women. We do not get paid proportionally to the men in th shop, yet our jobs are a bit less grueling than the men. However, with my personal job, I work quite hard. I do my job correctly, and very well, yet my male counterpart is beyond useless. He not only does things incorrectly, but blatantly so. He is lazy, messy, and disrespectful, and has worked there for much less time that I. It has been rumored that he does make more than myself. That angers me, because I both respect my job, and appreciate it.
How do I know that he makes more than I? Well, I don’t for a fact, but I have heard rumors, and his father is close to a boss. What solidifies my assumption that he makes more? Women on average get paid .77 cents on the dollar that each man receives. Which means if I make ten dollars an hour, a male could make three dollars more than I. This, you see would not bother me if I was lousy at my job. Yet, those three dollars that the company may save each hour that I work, is eaten up by the vast mistakes that my male counterpart makes. Where is the sense in that?
Every woman I know prides herself on the hard work that she performs. Instead of being rewarded for it monetary-wise, we must make up for it in virtue. We must remind ourselves that we do, indeed do what is required of us, and beyond. We must keep in mind that we carry the load and without us the company would most-likely lose money. We must toil and sweat, and repair the mistakes of those that surround us. We must work longer hours to be able to pay for our livelihood, and we must keep it in our hearts that we are doing the right thing, and will have no doubts when meeting our maker.
The constitution says that all men are created equal, yet it did not mention women. Does that mean that for the rest of our lives we must cling to the lifeboat that all men captain? I say not. Perhaps Hillary Clinton can make a historical move and take a stand for women everywhere. Maybe that will be the only way that we get treated equally and fairly amongst our peers. Instead, it is said that Hillary has ridden on her husband’s coat-tails to get to the Presidency. Never mind that she was a hard working woman with her very own career, her own term in the Senate, and was begged by millions of American’s to run for office. Yet, she may not win because she is a woman and it is assumed that she can’t handle the job. Not only could a woman handle the presidency, she may excel and change the world as we know it. Women should get paid more than men because we must prove ourselves able and capable in every situation, and work harder just to please the attitude that surrounds woman hood. We are far more efficient then men, and we put more heart into our work. I think that I deserve to make more money because of the ridicule that being a woman entails.
Should US companies be required to provide equal pay to women and men? – Part 85
Following the entrance of women into the workforce in America, particulary after World War I, the United States has been notorious for its common, but unspoken, pratice of unequal pay for men and women who generally hold the same roles.
In the past, many women who worked in paper mills or in various other trades were often paid far less than their male counterparts. Today, many US organizations attempt to combat gender discrimination in terms of payscale.
Unfortunately, however, violations of gender discrimination laws are often hard to prove. When an employer and a potential new hire negotiate terms of salary, it’s difficult for a female candidate to determine whether she is being discriminated against as opposed to her male counterpart.
In any case, the bottom line is, yes, US companies should certainly be required to provide equal pay to both men and women who hold similar roles. However, this legislation sure also surely included clauses that ensure that compensation is generated based on merit and personal negotiation skills rather than gender or sex.
Steps towards equality for women – Part 7
A few years ago, I remember going to the dollar store to get some things, when I ran into an older gentleman who attempted to open the door to the store for me. But being used to opening the door myself I beat him to the pass. Then he chuckled and said, “Hah! You’re too liberated!” I thought about what he said for a second, stepped back, and let him open the door for me. In the old days opening a door for a woman was always considered as a respectful courtesy to her. Nowadays, you usually have to open that heavy thing yourself!
My point is that women deserve respect in small ways as well as big, and that’s why equality of women is still a matter for debate even in 2008. Being a female has taken me down a very insightful, and sometimes frustrating path. It’s obvious to me that overall women are not treated as equals in many societies around the world including America.
There seems to be extremes as to what women must do to earn the same paycheck and the same acknowledgement as men. One portrayal is a woman who is extremely aggressive, ambitious and cold who shows no signs of vulnerability in the work place. The other is often a helpless creature who can’t go through life without a man’s help, (at least that’s what the woman puts on), and has to be rescued from herself. Another is the sex goddess that has the power to make men empty their bank accounts, whenever she wants. Real women have many struggles trying to cope with societies’ estimation of what they should and could be. Many see Hillary Clinton as a good role model for young girls who want to accomplish their goals. However, a good role model can be found with the female members of the family. It’s so important for a young girl to see positive messages being practiced in the home. When a young woman has a healthy self-esteem about who she is, she is more likely to be successful in her career and her personal life. Equality for women, I find, is more than the idea that women are just as good and just as smart as a man. It’s about treating her with respect and with the courtesy you would to a fellow human being.
People often interpret the Bible as a book written to demean women. But a close examination encourages husbands to treat their wives as their own bodies; and when the term “weaker sex is used,” it refers simply to the fact that overall, women are not as physically strong as the average man. Because women, have to go through a menstrual cycle and challenges associated with childbirth, a man can put up with any sacrifices he has to make with an understanding of what his wife has to deal with, and act accordingly with tenderness. Recognizing a man’s role as the head of the household does not have to be a burden for a woman if the headship is carried out properly. In the corporate world, everyone has their duties to make a company run smoothly. In order for the family to run smoothly, it’s neither necessary for a woman or a man to have to multitask responsibility when it can be shared.
The media can make this become more attainable. What we watch often has an effect on how we live. But I suppose it’s up to us how far we are willing to go to make this a continuing debate.
Womens rights in China today
The People’s Republic of China is a totalitarian state. The Communist Party is the only political entity allowed to exist within its borders. Because of this fact, much of the information on women’s rights can be classified as secret. Many statistics on kidnapping and the trafficking in girls and women, induced abortions, sterilizations, infanticides and other human rights violations are unknown.
It is undeniable that, since the 1980s, the Chinese government has taken advantage of free market policies to help lift hundreds of millions of its people out of grinding poverty. It now boasts the fastest-growing economy in the world. Although some women have shared in the improved economic conditions, many have not.
Under the law, women have gained equality in education, marriage, rights and freedoms, but in many villages and rural areas, the laws are ignored. Domestic violence is still widely reported, and trafficking in women and children, especially girls, is a regular occurrence.
China is home to 1.3 billion people. It is the most populous country in the world. In an effort to curb its ballooning population, the government devised a law in the 1970s which decreed that each family could have only one child.
Because of a Confucian tradition, boys have always been valued more than girls. Boys carry on the family name, are considered better workers, receive higher wages and are viewed as the parents’ insurance during old age. When parents are restricted to having only one child, they much prefer that it be a baby boy.
Female new-borns are often killed or abandoned. Abortion is encouraged. Since 1997, hundreds of “mobile abortion clinics” have roamed the countryside. Women are forced to submit to abortions or sterilization after a birth has occurred, by local authorities, anxious to adhere to the one-child family ideal.
Government officials are beginning to realize that this policy was ill-advised. In 2005 there were only 100 girls born for about 120 boys, and the disparity is expected to increase. If the present trend contiues, by 2020, there will be 30 million Chinese men unable to find wives. The possible widespread civil unrest which could result might prove troublesome indeed for the government.
In China today women workers predominate in the fields of agriculture, banking, textile work, and export manufacturing.
Many farms are worked by women. Husbands and older children have migrated to the cities because the farms no longer pay well enough to support
