I'm a big big girl in a big big world
A Norwegian girl has more opportunities as a girl now than ever. More and more Norwegian men are taking their share of the household work, and especially taking care of the children. You have to look for a long time to find a Norwegian boy or man who does not think girls should study or work. However, I still think most boys would like to earn more than their girlfriend and have studies the same amount of years... Before, men and women had to different roles the family in the society which they tried to fulfill. Now these roles are much more intertwined, and men and women try to make success on two different arenas both at home and at work. These new «double roles» are not clear; it is up to every couple to find their «place». On the contrary, for many girls in Bangladesh it is enough that you are good at cooking and cleaning, and many men in Bangladesh just have to manage work. The roles are clear and you don't have to juggle so many balls... Maybe that is not too bad?
In some ways, being a girl in Norway today means having a lot more freedom than before. You can choose to study almost whatever you like. They have quotas for women in boards. They especially want women to apply for professor positions at the Universities. A lot of Norwegian women still do the cooking, but at least they are not expected to spend two hours on the kitchen only to make dinner. To make readymade food in a quarter is accepted, even though it is not admired.
On the other hand, there is much more pressure. In all the serials and movies on TV, there are beautiful, well dressed, stylish women. And poor movie star if she hasn't removed the extra fat from her thighs or have forgotten to shave her legs. The paparazzi love those things, at least as long it is women involved. How often have you seen a celebrity magazine write about the big belly of Orlando Bloom? Or the bad hair day of Jude Law?* I think that, to some extent, almost all Norwegian girls feel they have to live up to the modern western beauty ideal. Especially in lower secondary school there is a lot of pressure to wear the right clothes, which changes every season, at least if you want to be really trendy. My mother, who was very concerned with women?s issues in the 70?s, was sure that after 20 ? 30 years it would be total equality between women and men, but today she says the young girls are more «feminine» then ever... So my question is: Is it because we are concerned with clothes and make up from nature?s side? Or is it because we get influenced with the people that surround us and the perfect women presented in the media?
We have a lot to be grateful for, as girls in Norway. The opportunities we have are vast. Just walking around in the street alone, is a privilege not all women in the world share. However, women have to face high expectations. In some cases these are mainly the women?s own expectations to themselves, but in other cases it is the society that is too demanding. Maybe the next girl power battle in Norway should be for «the right to be imperfect»?
Essential proofreading: Heidi Solberg Okland
*I rarely read celebrity magazines so I it is a possibility that they actually have written about that, but I guess you see the point.
Vin med tre gode ettersmaker
Hvis ikke du som tilfeldigvis lurte deg innom bloggen min har skjønt det ennå. Gå ut til polet og spør etter en flaske med Fair trademerket Thandi.
Noen fattige av biologiske årsaker?
Tankene vandrer. Vikingene var ikke så ille når det kom til stykket. Ja, så var de ikke så snille, de drepte, voldtok og stjal, sånn sett var de barbarer, men de gjorde ingen varig skade der de for på røvertokt. De drepte ikke direkte eller indirekte 95% av befolkningen, slik som det skjedde da europeerne mye senere inntok det store kontinentet i vest.
Har du noen gang lurt på hvorfor europeerne invaderte Amerika og ikke omvendt? Har du noen gang lurt på hvorfor europeerne hadde våpen, basiller, teknologi og skrivekyndighet og ikke amerikanerne? Jeg har ofte tenkt at jeger og sanker livet, kan være et bra liv. Man vandrer rundt i skogen, ren luft, dyr, dufter av planter, vakre naturområder, og så samler man inn søte bær og dreper de fine søte dyrene. Man har det man trenger, ikke masse luksus materielle goder, men man trives i harmoni med naturen. Vel i boka jeg leser nå, Guns Germs Steel. A short history of everybody for the last 13 000 years, mener biologen Jared Diamonds at ikke folk på jorda var jegere og sankere fordi det var et så vidunderlig liv eller for de de var dumme, men fordi de ikke hadde tilgang til planter og store pattedyr som man lett kunne tilpasse matproduksjon. Derfor fikk de ikke matoverskudd, som igjen kunne ført til økt befolkningstall og tetthet, som igjen ville ført til at man kunne utvikle mer komplekse samfunn, der man over lang tid utviklet våpen, basiller, teknologi og skrivekyndighet. Dette var selvfølgelig den forenklete kortversjon av en bok på over 400 sider, men for å svare på spørsmålet over.
I følge Jared Diamonds er ikke fattige fattige p.g.a. på grunn av at de er mindre intelligente enn andre folk. (Altså et nei til en rasistisk forklaring.) Han mener at det er geografien som er den ultimale eller bakenforliggende årsaken til dagens fordeling.