In today's economy, are women surging while men lag?
If publishing is any indication, we鈥檙e experiencing a second wave of feminist sentiment. There鈥檚 Naomi Wolf鈥檚 鈥淰agina: A New Biography,鈥� a provocative appraisal of female sexuality; Lynn Povich鈥檚 鈥淭he Good Girls Revolt,鈥� about a 1970 class-action lawsuit female employees filed against Newsweek magazine; and Hanna Rosin鈥檚 鈥淭he End of the Men: And the Rise of Women,鈥� a 21st-century exploration of how gender roles have evolved.
Rosin鈥檚 book has been described as a modern-day 鈥淔eminine Mystique鈥� of sorts, as well as one that picks up where Maureen Dowd left off in 鈥淎re Men Necessary?鈥� But Rosin introduces a new character in this post-recession landscape that, to some extent, changes everything: the economy.
In short, she argues, the recession has been harder on men and has been an unlikely equalizer in the gender games. Traditionally 鈥渇emale鈥� fields like healthcare, education, and service work are strong, while traditionally 鈥渕ale鈥� fields like manufacturing, construction, and finance have been hit particularly hard by the recession. What that means is that while women have returned to work, entered new fields, and surged ahead in their careers, men have largely been left behind.
鈥淚f Rosin has an overriding thesis, it's the need to adapt to a changing landscape, something that women have been able to do with greater nimbleness than men,鈥� writes in a reflection of Rosin鈥檚 book.
In the Alabama town of Alexander City, spotlighted in a recent essay adaptation of Rosin鈥檚 book, the gender roles have so starkly reversed, with women becoming the primary breadwinners and men, the 鈥渉ousehusbands,鈥� that Rosin ventures, 鈥淭hese days the establishment is being marshaled to confirm our new cultural notion that men have become the frail dependents in need of a protector. That men need marriage more than women do. In fact, they need it to survive.鈥�
It鈥檚 a bold assertion and one that鈥檚 certainly supported in some examples, but, writes USA Today, 鈥�...where is the statistical evidence to back up such a strong assertion?鈥�
Rosin鈥檚 assertions and predictions are nothing if not intriguing, fresh, compelling, and bold. But critics assert the book is great at making attention-grabbing claims, less so at supporting them. 鈥淣ot all her anecdotes cogently illustrate her points and her statistical evidence is often vague, particularly when tinged with hyperbole,鈥� writes USA Today, adding, 鈥溾�hile her points are valid and bolstered anecdotally, her book sometimes feels like a long-form, and somewhat padded, version of her original essay.鈥�
And then there are those who find the book鈥檚 premise itself unconstructive.
鈥淲hy are the relations between men and women still portrayed as a zero-sum game?鈥� ask Erika and Nicholas Christakis, a Harvard administrator and professor, respectively, in a magazine essay. 鈥淪o much of the coverage of gender issues 鈥� indeed the book鈥檚 cover title itself 鈥� pits women and men against one another. Why do we need to establish who is winning and losing the war?鈥�
One thing鈥檚 for sure, Rosin鈥檚 book, and its incendiary title, has got people talking about how rapidly the recession has reshaped gender roles. We鈥檙e eager to read her exploration of the intersection of economics and gender, a fascinating topic about which we expect to read much more in the coming months and years.
Husna Haq is a Monitor correspondent.
