1st Edition

Women and the Family Two Decades of Change

By Beth Hess, Marvin B Sussman Copyright 1984
    264 Pages
    by Routledge

    264 Pages
    by Routledge

    Despite the pervasive changes that have taken place in women’s lives in the past twenty-five years--increased participation in the labor force, the attainment of higher levels of education, and higher salaries--comparable changes in the division of family labor and in the roles of men have lagged considerably. In this timely book, the editors and other experts in feminism and family studies examine the effects of two decades of influence by the women’s movement on sex roles and child rearing. While applauding some positive changes, the contributors point to powerful forces of resistance to equality between the sexes, especially “the question of family”--the fear of depriving children of maternal attachment and the belief that working mothers are placing their own interests above those of other family members--as an issue that, until fully addressed, prevents genuine equality between the sexes.

    Contents Women’s Roles in Mythic Tradition and a Planetary Culture
    • The Women’s Movement and the Family: A Socio-Historical Analysis of Constraints on Social Change
    • In Defense of Traditional Values: The Anti-Feminist Movement
    • Women’s Work in the Home: Seems Like Old Times
    • The View from Below: Women’s Employment and Gender Equality in Working Class Families
    • Working Wives and Mothers
    • Dual-Earner Families
    • Afro-American Women and Their Families
    • Men in Families
    • Changing Family Roles and Interactions
    • Missing Links: Notes on an Impossible Mission
    • Family Roles and the Impact of Feminism on Women’s Mental Health Across the Life Course
    • Cinderella: Her Multi-Layered Puissant Messages Over Millennia
    • Selective Guide to Current Reference Sources on Women and the Family
    • Afterword

    Biography

    Beth Hess, Marvin B Sussman