Our blogger friend, Stephanie Holmes, offers some thoughtful ideas on reclaiming true femininity in a modern feminist culture that demands women be less of a woman and more of a man.
Decades after the release of modern feminists' adopted anthem song, Helen Reddy's "I Am Woman," she writes,
… this "hear me roar" concept still permeates mainstream culture. Women are encouraged to be more assertive and aggressive in order to be successful. After all, nice girls don't get the corner office. We're told to shed softer characteristics, because they make us appear too feminine.
Feminists insist that women, in their quest for "equality," adopt aggressive masculine traits in their personal relationship roles as well.
Yet Stephanie draws a subtle distinction between the more "masculine" characteristics appropriate to success in management roles in the workplace, and the more "feminine" characteristics appropriate to success in personal relationships.
There is, she argues, "great strength and power in womanhood" – a strength and power women should not relinquish in their personal lives. And she offers two practical ways in which women can reclaim their true femininity in modern feminist culture.
Feminists' demands are a bridge too far for most women. Truly successful modern women understand the distinction between their professional and personal roles, and they balance them accordingly.
This balance is not unique to women. Successful men balance their professional and personal roles as well. If we doubt this, consider the example of a soldier. A fierce and deadly warrior on the battlefield, the aggressive soldier becomes a soft and gentle protector cradling his newborn baby in the nursery.
Would women want it any other way?