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Slaughter's Essay 'Why Men Still Can' T Have It All

1025 Words5 Pages

“A gender-equal society would be one where the word 'gender' does not exist: where everyone can be themselves” (Gloria). Many females argue that women are more at a disadvantage than men in regard to balancing a social and professional life, whereas males argue it’s the other way around. Both Anne-Marie Slaughter a foreign policy analyst, public commentator, and professor at various prestigious colleges, and Richard Dorment, a chief critic for The Daily Telegraph professor at IVY league universities, display conflicting views on the subject. Slaughter believes that society must change to make the balance between social and professional life equal for both genders, but Dorment is closer to the idea that it is impossible for both genders to …show more content…

He uses points she made to show the sides she failed show in her essay- the side of a man. For example, in response to priorities, Dorment claims that females feel guiltier than men when it comes to neglecting children. Although males do not neglect their children either, females suffer more upon leaving their kids and prioritizing work than men. It may be true that some women feel guiltier than men, but it could also be the other way around. Just because females are more likely to feel guilt for leaving kids does not mean that only women must address it. I firmly believe that if there is an issue of neglect that is bothersome to either parent, then one parent, whether it be mom or dad, should spend more time at home. In her spiel about how females do more around the house, and therefore do more work than men when their professional jobs are included, Dorment takes calculates the hours of work put in by both genders. He finds that on average, males work more hours outside the house than a female, however, the work a female does within the home is balanced out by male contributions made outside the home. Dorment insists that although females spend more time at home, men should not be punished for this because they provide for their family by working outside of home. I understand that balancing work and family may lead to issues, however this should be addressed before getting involved in kids or careers. When it comes to which parent or gender is busier, many factors come into play with this. Dorment explains that “According to the Pew study, 70 percent of working mothers say a flexible schedule is extremely important to them, compared [to] 48 percent of working fathers, and for many of those women the opportunity to do some work from home is the critical difference between a life that works and one that doesn't”. This numerical evidence

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