From "Wife-Beater" to "Husband-Beater"

According to Webster.com, a family is defined as “a group of individuals living under one roof and usually under one head.” The “head” of this family has no predetermined position or gender connected to it whatsoever. Is the “head” the breadwinner father or the strong-armed mother of the family? The average American has evolved over the years to have an independent personality and “do-it-yourself” attitude. The rise of women in professional careers is contributing to the breakdown of the traditional family but this is not necessarily a bad change.
Over the years, men have gained a certain amount of power associated with their work. The real change in work came when men began to work outside of the farm and away from the confines of the home life. Beginning in the 1800s, production moved “out of the household” and into large factories and businesses. People were no longer required to be self-sufficient and grow every crop that they used. With industrialization came dependency. There was a major shift in the tasks assigned to workers. Women, who’s nurturing state caused them to bear and rear children, were required to stay home and tend to a farm or household while the husband went to support the family. Women did not collect a regular salary - therefore were thought to not do any or very little “work.” Men were beginning to have more freedom because they were required to work outside the home. There was soon a demand for a factory work force where only the strong survived. Work became something of contracts, scheduling and six day work weeks. Women soon became accustomed to their “domestic” lifestyle, looking at it as an opportunity to not have to engage in paid employment outside of the home where they were required to live under another’s rules. It soon came to pass that a “lady” only acquired her title because of her father or as a result of a marriage. A woman’s identity was now grounded in her home role.
Leave-it-to-Beaver mothers are simply going out of style. Placing a father in a position of nurturing and caring will change children’s perspective and broaden their views. Children who grow up in homes with strong and dominant fathers have a tendency to rule their household similarly, sometimes taking advantage of their wives. If we take the passive mother role out of the household and allow a father-figure to nurture and care, we create a child who becomes stable and independent as well, having both parents to set examples. Children will have more respect for a wife or mother-figure simply because both parents are satisfied with their positions. With women having more control and power, in the future, the average person will now potentially walk into a store and give a tank-top-like shirt the title of “husband-beater” rather than the contrary.