Stripped of the political, misogynistic and fear-induced folderol in which it will no doubt find itself swathed, this book evidently makes a point that should not get lost. To be fair, I should clarify that I have read only the linked article and not the book itself. Judging from the storm of defensive, self-serving "I'm highly educated and how could anything be more important than my family" rhetoric in the reviews of the book on Amazon, maybe it does actually put down stay-at-home moms. If it does, it shouldn't; the whole point of feminism, as I've said before*, is that women are complete human beings with the right to make whatever choices we deem best for ourselves. And we should be supporting rather than denigrating one another.
That said, however, there is no excuse for any grown woman to assume financial servitude. Self-respect, self-esteem and self-confidence are essential to leading a happy, productive and contributory life - and they cannot flourish in the absence of personal financial responsibility and autonomy. Why anyone would want to abdicate one of the best features of adulthood - self-direction - is beyond me. Working to support oneself is incredibly satisfying. The knowledge that one can do so is incredibly liberating, as is taking personal financial responsibility. Choosing to be wholly dependent on someone else financially is choosing to be a child. I couldn't agree more that this is an unacceptable choice for any able-minded person over 18. Man or woman, working or not.
*Quite a bit, actually. Read the feminism posts if you're interested.
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