Chapters 7 & 8 Reproductive Health & Family Systems – Gendered Voices, Feminist
Chapters 7 & 8 Reproductive Health & Family Systems – Gendered Voices, Feminist Visions
ISBN: 9780197622629
By: Susan M. Shaw; Janet Lee
The media has made a big deal out of the “working mom” versus “stay-at-home mom” debate for years. Women often debate with one another about what is the “right” thing to do. Taking what you have read about health, reproduction, family systems, and the information from the videos, identify at least two institutionalized factors that may contribute to the imbalance of equity (ability to work for pay, domestic labor, care tasks, mental load, etc.) in the family, society, etc. for most women and how might those barriers be overcome to allow more equitable forms of “choice”? Use information from the course content to support your answers. This is not a place for unsupported opinions but identifying and accounting for your own socialization can help bridge the gap in understanding that we each have based upon our own intersectionality (i.e. My personal perspective is that of a middle-aged, cisgender, white female raised in a repressive evangelical religious structure while living in poverty). Questions to consider when forming your response:
You do NOT need to answer all of these questions but you should address the major themes of “choice”, systems, power, gender, socialization, and privilege that appear in the prompts. We want to see how you connect the concepts we have discussed so far throughout the course.
What are some specific issues that women may face if they a) stay home or b) work outside the home?
What types of issues influence the decision for a woman to stay home?
Can this always be considered a “choice” for everyone?
How does the “choice” intersect with privilege, inequality, gender roles, or other concepts we have discussed in class so far?
How does reproductive health influence the role of women in the family unit?
Think about planning for childcare, schooling, etc. during the height of COVID and the impact it may have had on decisions to work outside the home.
What is the role of the various family systems discussed in the text in creating or supporting whether a woman works outside the home? The balance of labor within the home? Lastly, in what ways do the institutionalized factors you identified influence the decision of women to work outside the home?