Role of Women in Society

While we tend to think that the role of women in today's society is as important as that of men, when it comes to legal, educational, socio-economic, religious matters, etc., we often tend to employ different yardsticks. Traditionally, chauvinists have looked upon women as inferior to men. In the past, the norm was that men would work and women would stay at home and raise kids, do the household chores, etc. Women did not have access to education, had no say in the matters that impacted them the most and the role of women in marriage was insignificant, with parents selecting the groom for them. Altogether, the role of women in society was to make sure that they are obedient wives and caring mothers. They did not have an individuality of their own.

Women had to even fight for the basic right of being able to vote. They were given this right in the year 1918 but there was still a disparity between men and women. While the voting age for men was 18 years, it was 21 for women. This kind of gender discrimination was rampant in those times. Women started working in factories in the 19th century but the working conditions of the women were deplorable. They had to work for long hours and were given a meager pay. The federal laws in the 1960s were in favor of women to a great extent. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 laid down guidelines that men and women should be paid equally, but women continued to face discrimination in the private sector like retail stores, banks, etc. With time, a lot of people fought for women's rights and today a lot of changes have taken place but still we cannot say that gender inequality does not exist.

Role of Women in Politics

Politics was always thought of as a 'men's game', dirty and not fair for the 'fairer sex'. These assumptions made many governments of 19th century to resist any kinds of efforts by women to play a part in the politics of the country. A long struggle by women led many thinkers to shed their reservations and women were allowed to be a part of the government. The first woman member of the United States House of Representatives was Jeanette Rankin of Montana in 1917. Miriam A. Ferguson and Nellie Taylor Ross became the first governors of the United States. When Frances Perkins was chosen as a Cabinet minister, it ushered a new era for women in politics. Since then, a lot of women have made their mark in US politics, with Hillary Clinton, Condolezza Rice and Sarah Palin being the important women of our era. In the world politics also, women went on to hold high offices. Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the prime minister of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in 1960 and successfully completed her five-year term. Indira Gandhi became the prime minister of India and held the office from 1966 to 1977 and again from 1980 till 1984 when she was assassinated. Golda Meir was the prime minister of Israel from 1969 to 1974. She gained popularity as "Iron Lady" when she ordered Mossad to hunt down the perpetrators of Munich Olympics massacre. Isabel Marnez de Peron became the President of Argentina upon her husband's death and was in office for two years. Margaret Thatcher became the prime minister of Britain in 1979 remained prime minister for three consecutive terms. The western world was still more tolerant to women than the east but it did not stop Khaleda Zia and Benazir Bhutto to head Muslim countries Bangladesh and Pakistan respectively.

These were some of the world's famous women leaders. The important role women played in the shaping the political, economical and social structure of their countries is laudable. Let us now take a look at the role of women in education.

Role of Women in Education

Besides politics, women have also played a major part in the education sector. Women have proved that they are in no ways lesser than men in attaining higher education. There was a time in early eighteenth century when women were told to withdraw from certain courses so that more men could be filled in. Educating women was looked as something which could be beneficial for a woman only in improving her personality but getting an education for a job or entrepreneurship was out of question. But the immense contribution women made to science, and literature made even their staunchest critics change their opinions. Marie Curie discovered the elements Radium and Polonium and won a Nobel Prize for this accomplishment. Maria Mayer, the famous Herman physicist helped the world know about the structure of the atom and was awarded the Nobel prize for her contribution to the separation of the isotopes of uranium. Dr. Sally K Ride became the first American woman to travel in space. Toni Morisson's observation of the American life through an African-American perspective made her a household name in US and she was awarded the Nobel prize for literature. Out of the 41 Man Booker prizes awarded so far, 15 have been won by women.

Apart from politics and education, the role of women in other professions like law, business, entertainment, healthcare etc. is commendable. While changing roles of women in different countries has ushered a new hope in developed countries, women in the Third World countries have had limited opportunities. Attempts are being made by both the government and NGOs to do something for the uplifting of women and make the world aware about various women's issues, but little has changed on the ground. In the Indian sub-continent, especially in rural areas of India and Pakistan, the role of women in society is still restricted to household chores etc. and a vast majority of people prefer a baby boy. This preference is not restricted to rural areas only and cuts across all socio-economic barriers. The condition is not any better in sub-Saharan Africa with girls being sold in the flesh trade. There is a lot of work that needs to be done to secure the future of millions of impoverished girls all around the world. While women in America may be a lot more fortunate than women in the Third world countries, it still hasn't had a woman President since George Washington became the first President in 1789. So, there is a lot of ground to be covered before we can lay our claim to be a land free of gender discrimination.