This is the kind of article that can stir up controversy. But it seems like the kind of thing a blog like this is meant to discuss. I found it interesting, anyway, and wondered if you would as well.
http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424052702303657404576361691165631366-lMyQjAxMTAxMDIwMDEyNDAyWj.html
How far should choice be allowed to go? Can government control solve all evils or does it create evil? Is our technology moving at such speeds that our morals and laws cannot keep up with? Why are we so hung up on gender?
This was super interesting. And troubling. I just jotted down a few things while I read that struck me.
ReplyDelete"The decision (to abort a female fetus) is often made by the mother or mother-in-law" -- This made me think of Snow Flower. How the women in that book knew what life held for a baby girl. And how that might be hard to face. It seems absolutely appalling from the outside that a women might be the ones to decide to abort a female baby, but it almost makes more sense when the women know, better than the men, what a life as a female will mean.
a 17-year-old girl in a developing country is in no position to capture her own value. a result: women sold or stolen and forced into prostitution or marriage -- This is really sad. Because of the lack of women in the cultures, they are at a high value. Yet, that value isn't their own. It doesn't give them any power or authority or position. It's given to their families. Probably the men in their families?
the conflict between the feminist ideal of choice and the death of so many girls. -- This was interesting. If the author of the book review accurately reflects the author's idea on this matter, the fact that the feminist idea of protecting the right to an abortion overrules the protection of females themselves is just absurd.
In case people don't know this: it totally makes my day when there are bites on discussion bait!
ReplyDeleteYour first point: do you know what I thought of? Beloved. This could be a decision of motherly love. But then that old question: is it ever right for one human to decide for another if it is worth it to live?
Second point: I HATE that men are deciding women's value. Vomit. It happens in a thousand different ways. I have a friend going through a divorce. She's getting financially screwed because she made career sacrifices for HIS kids. He's draining her dry. She can't afford to drag him to court and fight. He is determining her financial worth. And on a different note - does an "unattractive" and sufficiently clothed girl ever magically appear in beer commercials/male fantasies? Nope. Why do men get to decide?
Third point: I agree. I have had similar discussion with feminists and can wager a high bid that the reviewer exactly portrayed the author's position.
Loved the discussion, A!
Love reading your discussions. So thought provoking. Thanks for keeping me thinking. Thanks for piercing my bubble every once in a while. I love this blog :)
ReplyDelete