Women Are Free to Make a Choice

“Toward the end of World War II，” reports economist Dr. Eli Ginzberg， “l(fā)arge numbers of wives entered the labor force. But the experts were sure that when peace came， the mothers would return to their traditional ways， leaving the work force to devote themselves exclusively to child-rearing， homemaking， and volunteer activities.” Time proved the experts wrong. The percentage of working wives and mothers kept on accelerating through the 50s， 60s， and 70s. “Today，” he says， “about two out of every five women with a child under six are working at an outside job market， and are dealing successfully with responsibilities as parents， workers， and homemakers.”

It is easy， however， to understand the feelings of many mothers who refuse to work， mothers who quit their jobs to stay at home and devote their full time to raising children. Some women assume it is their sole responsibility as wife and mother to take care of their children， their husband and their home. They believe if they quit their job， they could devote more time and energy to being a good wife and mother than they could if they dont. Many women like the freedom of being at home. They can do things they had no time for when they worked. They may read for an hour on a living room chair， take courses in tennis， dance at the neighborhood health club， walk around in the shops leisurely， or relax in the park on a nice sunny day without worrying about being late for work all the time.

Although many women choose to stay home and care for their families， increasing numbers of working mothers have made new lives for themselves outside the home. They like a life filled with an active， money-making job. Though very busy， they lead a full fruitful life. “We werent born with silver-spoons in our mouth，” one working mother says. “We want certain things for our family and we have to struggle to achieve them.” These women feel that their jobs make them more attractive and more interesting to their husbands. With the money earned by a working mother the family enjoys things they otherwise could not： a shiny new piano， a summer vacation on the famous resorts， an assured college education for the children. These mothers believe that carefully selected day-care centers， nursery schools or at-home sitters enrich the childs life with experiences no parents alone can offer. Perhaps children have much less time with a working mother than they do with a mother close by all day long； but the quality of the time is what is important. In a single hour a thoughtful working mother can give to her child as much love and attention as a mother at home all the time can give to her child on a full day.

Because of the attention to womens rights， many mothers who in the past might have felt trapped in their homes have seized opportunities to use their energy and potential in stimulating careers. Yet there are women at home who see their work there as more important than anything. The point on all this， as I see it， is that the society must be made to tolerate choices so that no one is locked into a hateful life simply because someone expects him or her to behave in a required way. People must be free to choose the lives which they believe are best for themselves and must have enough opportunities to change their minds if they make mistakes.

婦女自由做出選擇

“第二次世界大戰(zhàn)快結(jié)束的時(shí)候，”經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)家艾力·金茲貝博士說(shuō)，“大批婦女進(jìn)入勞動(dòng)大軍。但是專家們確信，和平到來(lái)時(shí)，這些母親會(huì)回到傳統(tǒng)的生活方式，離開勞動(dòng)隊(duì)伍，專心專意照管孩子、料理家務(wù)，以及從事一些自愿參加的活動(dòng)?！睍r(shí)間證明專家們錯(cuò)了。在20世紀(jì)50、60及70年代，勞動(dòng)?jì)D女的百分比不斷增長(zhǎng)。金茲貝博士說(shuō)：“今天，每五個(gè)帶有一個(gè)不滿六歲小孩的婦女中，約莫有兩個(gè)在勞務(wù)市場(chǎng)工作，而且正在出色地履行母親、職工和家務(wù)能手這三者的多種職責(zé)。”

然而，為數(shù)不少的母親不愿意參加工作，辭職待在家里，全力以赴養(yǎng)育子女。要理解她們的感情和想法并不難。一些婦女認(rèn)為，作為妻子和母親，照顧孩子、丈夫和家庭是她們唯一的責(zé)任。她們相信，辭掉工作比沒(méi)辭能有更多的時(shí)間和精力料理家務(wù)，做一個(gè)賢妻良母。許多婦女喜歡待在家里，享受家中的自由，做一些在工作時(shí)沒(méi)有時(shí)間做的事。她們可以坐在起居室的椅子上看一小時(shí)的書，可以學(xué)習(xí)網(wǎng)球課程，可以到鄰近的健身俱樂(lè)部跳舞，也可以悠閑自在地逛逛商店，或者，在一個(gè)陽(yáng)光明媚的大好日子去公園放松放松，而不必總是擔(dān)心工作遲到。

盡管許多婦女做出待在家里照顧家人的抉擇，但是，越來(lái)越多的職業(yè)婦女在外面給自己開創(chuàng)了新生活。她們喜歡從事富有成效地賺錢的工作，雖然很忙，但生活很充實(shí)。一位職業(yè)婦女說(shuō)：“我們并非出生在富貴人家。我們希望為子女做些事，而只有艱苦奮斗才能辦到?！边@些婦女認(rèn)為正是工作使她們對(duì)丈夫更具有吸引力，使丈夫?qū)λ齻兏信d趣。有一位職業(yè)母親賺錢，子女可以享受到母親不掙錢便無(wú)法享受到的東西：一臺(tái)閃閃發(fā)亮的新鋼琴，去著名的勝地度過(guò)一個(gè)暑假，以及確定無(wú)疑的大學(xué)教育等。這些母親相信，精心挑選的日托中心、托兒所或家庭保姆能豐富孩子們的生活，提供一些父母不能提供的經(jīng)歷。也許孩子們和一位職業(yè)母親聚在一起的時(shí)間比和一位整天待在家里的母親相聚的時(shí)間要少很多，但重要的是相聚時(shí)間的質(zhì)量。一位關(guān)心孩子的職業(yè)母親在一個(gè)小時(shí)之內(nèi)給予孩子的愛(ài)和關(guān)懷，比得上一位居家母親全天之內(nèi)給予孩子的愛(ài)和關(guān)懷。

由于婦女權(quán)益受到關(guān)注，許多在過(guò)去可能認(rèn)為自己陷入了家庭陷阱的婦女抓住了機(jī)會(huì)，把自己的精力和潛能投入到催人奮發(fā)的事業(yè)中，而一些居家婦女則認(rèn)為家庭工作比任何其他事情都重要。我認(rèn)為，最主要的則是應(yīng)當(dāng)使全社會(huì)容許不同選擇，這樣沒(méi)有任何人會(huì)僅僅因?yàn)槟橙讼Ｍ?她按要求行事而陷入討厭的生活。人們應(yīng)當(dāng)自由選擇他們認(rèn)為對(duì)自己最好的生活方式，如果犯了錯(cuò)誤，必須讓他們有足夠的機(jī)會(huì)改變想法。