In my eyes, a liberated woman is someone who has established their own sense of femininity based on her own grounds and not by society’s oppressing standards. She is comfortable in her own skin and expressing herself in any form, she isn’t worried about her body hair or how sexually active (or unactive) she is. A liberated woman is educated, and lifts other women up and supports them. But based on The Politics of Housework, “the Liberated Woman, has sex a lot, and has a Career, preferably something that can be fitted in with household chores – like dancing, pottery or painting.” I take this quote to be half true and half satire, because I atleast agree with the first section of it.
The liberated woman is important for women’s liberation because these two things go hand in hand, you can’t have one without the other. It’s almost like the chicken and egg scenario, how would we have women’s liberation without the liberated woman backing it up and fighting for the cause?
The Politics of Housework shows that “the personal is political” because it shows us that “many American men are not accustomed to doing monotonous, repetitive work which never issues any lasting…achievement,” it then ties this point to the reason why many fathers (including my own) would rather be the house ‘repair-man’ than do the dishes. This quote alone blew my mind because it made me realize that wow, my dad is not the only man doing this, this is essentially a worldwide common issue in heterosexual relationships. I have no idea why so many men dread doing the dishes, I like doing the dishes! It’s a very short and simple task and makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something and been productive. But this isn’t about me.
The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm proves “the personal is political” because it delves into the issue that men (and even some women) are so uneducated about the anatomy of women that because of this lack of knowledge women are wrongly being labeled as frigid. This incorrect assumption about where women orgasms come from is so deeply rooted in society that there’s even a surgery that’s meant to ‘fix’ the women. This can all be applied to the personal is political because of Freuds theory being based off the assumption of female anataomy and how it caters to pleasure men. This problem is so common that it’s been deemed the ‘sex comedy’ “The vast majority of women who pretend vaginal orgasm to their men are faking it to ‘get the job’…So not to offend his ego, the woman will comply with the prescribed role and go through simulated ecstasy.”
Hey Kayla, I really like your definition of the liberated women. it’s a bit different than others on here
I also felt that “shock”/oh my god that makes sense feeling hearing the line about repair-work than dishes. That concept that men do do not want to do things like dishes because there is no long-term outcome or functionality from it in the way that fixing a cabinet might, so they see tasks with no “reward” as pointless.
Kayla,
I really like how your definition highlights the feminine. The liberated woman and women’s liberation do go hand in hand in that you can’t have one without the other, very well put. How would the liberated woman have come about had it not been for the oppression she has become aware of in the first place.
When you said that you like doing the dishes, my first thought was and if you say that in front of a man, they will use THAT as the excuse to continuing exiling themselves from these tasks just like one of Mainardi’s examples. *sigh*
Hi Kayla, I like your definition about liberated woman-that show her independence also she is united with other women. It is funny that in my household, my father did most housework and he didn’t let my mom do that much. Unfortunately, when I said my father took care of most housework other people would read it in a patriarchy way that my father is not a breadwinner or he is not able to take care of the home so he has to take care of the housework; my grandma would consider my mom useless or lazy because she didn’t do the housework that often. As what we learn about patriarchy, under this culture, it would twist men and women, and even normal activities would be analyzed in another way if it doesn’t fit in the stereotype.
Hi Kayla, very vivid and good discussion. I enjoyed your explained version of liberated women and the myth of Vaginal Orgasm. I used to also have similar myths about Vaginal Orgasm. Women have always been expected to follow rules whilst men run the houses and went to work or tried to achieve their goals and aspirations. Women are to stay home, clean the house, do the laundry and cook and look after the kids well being. I am glad however that we are being educated, that so many people are being liberated over issues like this, that the vagina is not the center of women achieving orgasm.