The 19th and 20th centuries were a detrimental time for women everywhere. It was a time to fight for equal rights so women can exist freely in the same nature as their male counterparts, women were actively pursuing suffrage, educational rights, better working conditions, and putting an end to restrictive and stereotypical gender roles. Women, everywhere we’re taking a stand and fighting for the opportunity to be more than housewives

There are various publications where one can learn about the extensive history of the feminist movement and the ideas & attitudes behind it. One can begin by analyzing The Politics of Housework by Pat Mardini for a better understanding of these attitudes and what they wish to convey. This article discusses the cycle of “servitude” experienced by women in regards to their husbands, which was much of the root of the feminist movement. Women began to grow weary of this constant battle between their own happiness and the happiness of their husbands. Mardini discusses the difference between liberated women and women’s liberation and how it is linked to housework. Ultimately Mardini highlights that women’s liberation is not a political movement. I find this interesting because while there were political aspects like suffrage many of the changes that needed to take place and still need to take place today can be easily fixed on a societal level. She discusses the nature behind housework and that it shouldn’t be as complex as it has become- as to people in a relationship there shouldn’t be expected roles but room for both parties to contribute evenly based on their own strength. She also explains that it is easy to see why men are the way they are as they have been able to maintain a particular lifestyle at the hands of a woman their entire lives however it is up to the wives to put their foot down and ultimately end this less than productive cycle that has been causing a rift for decades. Once a woman chooses to be liberated and free from this oppressive cycle things may change but women deserve to be just as free to move and exist as men even in terms of taking care of the home.

Similar ideas are discussed in the article the myth of Vaginal Orgasms (Koedt 1970) and fragility taking the conversation beyond housework to even the oppressive nature of sex and the lack of satisfaction for women. Koedt states that Fragility, as defined by men, is the failure of a woman to have a vaginal orgasm. The issue, however, is men’s lack of understanding of the female anatomy where there is a large confusion concerning Vaginal organisms which are less common, and clitoral orgasm which are more common. Instead of men learning and understanding this, the fault is placed on the woman when the men simply don’t understand the female anatomy. The article also discusses the pressure put on women during sex and even feeling the need to fake an orgasm to avoid upsetting their partner or them thinking something is wrong with her. The article also discusses bisexuality lesbianism more so as a fear of men’s giving women finding more sexual liberation in same-sex relationships.

In the same nature as housework, sex is also something that can be discussed within society to create a change in household and public narratives. This is also an area where women need to become liberated and break from the restrictive expectations associated with sex and the completion of housework.