gender - artifact.

What does the above picture represent? 

Is this lady representative of all women in the world? 

How did women acquire this stereotype? 

Why is it that women still possess this stereotype today?

  I think it is safe to say that the common stereotype of a woman today is a stay at home

Mother, who cooks, cleans, and takes care of the kids. Often times, she has dinner waiting for her

husband when he gets home from a long day at work. She spends her day tidying up the house,

doing laundry, and watching the kids. It is the man of the house who goes to work all day and

does all the "manly" tasks, such as mowing the lawn and home repairs. Even though this may

not be true of every household, it is true of many. How did this stereotypical lifestyle come about?

It originated in the very beginning of time, when societal surroundings suggested it was

right for the woman of the house to do the cooking and cleaning. It has continued on in time with

the support of the media, cultures, and family influences. Growing up, little girls are taught to

play with dolls and wear the color pink. Little boys are taught to play with trucks and wear the

color blue.

After many generations of these perceived stereotypes, people (especially women) have

started to realize that things do not need to be this way. Women have realized they can go to

work, while their husbands stay at home with the children. They have realized they can be doctors,

lawyers, and police officers. They can enlist in the army and compete in the same rigorous training

as men. In comparison with women, men have realized they can do things stereotypically different

too. Men can be nurses, or babysit. They can be chefs, homemakers, or can even sew.

So why is this picture still around? This stereotypical picture is here to remind us we can

be whatever we want to be. We do not have to let society control what we become or what stereotype

we fall into.

"the emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says: 'it's a girl'"

- Shirley Chisholm

"I wish someone would have told me that, just because I'm a girl, I don't have to get married"

- Marlo Thomas

"The test for whether or not you can hold a job should not be the arrangement of your chromosomes"

- Bella Abzug