In her new book, Necessary Dreams: Ambition in Womens Changing Lives, New York psychiatrist Anna Fels notes that despite vast strides in womens movements, modern women continue to deny themselves recognition and praise for a job well done.
Using examples of women from Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham to singer Madonna, Fels notes that women consistently turn away the recognition afforded to their male counterparts for their accomplishments. By doing so, women undermine their own self-confidence. According to Fels:
Likewise, Fels argues, the greatest emotional peril comes from choosing the most thankless job in society motherhood. She maintains that women who are full-time mothers are at risk for a lifetime of depression.
For women to avoid the pitfalls of their self-inflicted subordination, they must learn to accept and, in fact, demand recognition for their achievements.
Source: Michelle Conlin, Self-Deprecating Women, BusinessWeek, June 14, 2004.
For text http://www.businessweek.com:/print/magazine/content/04_24/b3887029_mz005.htm?ls
For more on Women http://www.womenintheeconomy.org
FMF Policy Bulletins/29 June 2004
