Gender Inequality
Gender inequality; a problem of the past and today “We’ve begun to raise our daughters more like sons… but few have the courage to raise our sons more like daughters.” (Steinem). From as long as history goes to present day, gender inequality is known as a global issue. The inequality is part of the daily person’s life. From the work place to your own home it’s an existing problem that needs to be taken care of. Gender equality is what many people strive for, but yet has not been achieved. It isn’t always directed to the female sex, men also struggle with the same concern. Gender equality was a dilemma in the past as well. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, inequality is shown towards Hester Prynne. The main themes of the novel are sin, knowledge, and human condition. Hester committed a sin of adultery and for that she was punished. “On the breast of her gown, in fine red cloth surrounded with an elaborate embroidery and fantastic flourishes of gold thread appeared the letter “A”.” (Hawthorne 60). Hester and her daughter, Pearl will be abashed for the rest of their lives. The fact of the matter is that Hester is being punished but there is another part of the equation not being penalized, the father of Pearl. Which in the end of the novel we figure out is Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale. Hester is a symbol of this time period, a mother. A mother during this time is supposed to be a stay at home mother and be loyal to her husband. Hester came to America without her husband Roger Chillingworth, and had an affair with Dimmesdale, and Pearl was the result. Because Hester is the woman she is put to blame. Women in this time didn’t have nearly as many rights as men, this happens in today’s world all of the time and it is no longer considered a sin at least in America. This is an illustration of gender dissimilarity of this era. In today’s world numerous people believe that men and women are not treated fairly in the work place. There is a work pay gap between