The families of our Learning Community have united together to form an overview of how the women and men in our families have changed throughout the generations past. With the configuration of so many different religions, cultures, and ethnic backgrounds, we have found that many families have changed in different ways, while others continue to live in the past. We have found that although many women have changed their roles in the part of the "bread winning", many of the men continue to keep a low profile at working in the home. On the other hand, many families have changed with the times, the wife and husband equally sharing the income and child raising. Many families have been able to move on to the "lifestyle of the 90's", leaving the others behind. We have also found that many homes are run by a single parent, not sharing the responsibilities of the chores and finances, leaving both parents trying to do it all alone.
Growing up, all that I (Bethany Lancaster) have heard from my mother, Rebecca Lancaster and grandmother, Patty Birkle, is how appreciative I should be of the fact that I am able to go out and pursue a career that I enjoy. They tell me that Iam lucky to have that freedom that they never had. My mother, Rebecca Lancaster, did not work until her children were in school, and her grandmother never worked. The women in her family have always been responsible for the cooking, cleaning, and child rearing. The men in the family have always been responsible for putting the bread on the table, and although her mother is able to work now, she is still responsible for raising the family. If this is freedom, I'm not sure I want it.
Through the help of our classmates, Kelli and I have been able to see the way that women in the work place and men in the home have begun to shape our society today, and how the roles of the men and women have changed. We have found that many of the roles of the men and women have changed. They have gone out into the work force, and demanded attention, and as daughters and granddaughters of these triumphant women, we should be grateful to them. Many of them have worked full-time jobs, while raising a family. They have had to prove themselves worthy and capable of doing this without having to interfere with the lives of their husbands. Not until recently have the men of our society begun to change, and to take on responsibilities that were once classified as a "women's work."