LeGloahec 1 Kelsey LeGloahec WGS Capstone April 24, 2012

The Feminization of Work By exploring the concept of womens work, the evolving complexity of work and its relation to age will be expressed in the context of feminist her-story. Womens work includes but is not limited to: care giving, domestic work, various jobs in the public sector, and even volunteerism. Women have continued to gain political visibility and therefore agency as the Twentieth Century has unfolded. Increasingly, womens work has become valued within the public, private, and political spheres. However, lack of economic gain does not necessarily merit validity in work. As women travel through their lives experimenting with different jobs and careers, the concept of work changes its definition relative to the woman. Women gain empowerment through political endeavors that are reflective of personal passions and life circumstances. Age can be a political force as it affects the quality and options for work. Just as gender affects the quality and options of work, so does age. How can we begin this process of integrating age with gender to use it as a tool for creating change? A more qualitative and feminist approach can assist us in investigating qualities and characteristics of all the types of work that a particular woman has experienced throughout her lifetime. This in turn can lead us to grasp how women in their old age continue to be active citizens even after the

LeGloahec 2 work force deems them no longer productive, i.e. retirement. The particular woman highlighted in this essay embodies political strength rather than an idyllic success story. Arguably, the strength and drive of Granny D comes from the privilege she gained from her old age.

Granny D Doris Haddock was the political grandmother from New Hampshire who was getting upset about the way money was moving around in government and moreover felt that she was not being listened to by her Senators and State Representatives. She was so fed up that she decided to take a walk; a long walk that stretched from California to Washington D.C. in support of Campaign Finance Reform. Granny D began her trek after ninety years of being a U.S. citizen in the hope that she could shake up the system that was allowing soft money to determine the winners of political elections. Although her political actions have been most highlighted, she called herself a grandmother above everything else. Her work as a grandmother is what is most significant in the context of feminist theory and practice because of the dynamic of her age and gender. Granny Ds legacy is commemorated today because she is said to overcome the odds of walking across the country. While on her walk, she faced many obstacles that transformed her into a national celebrity when she marched into Washington D.C. after two years on the road. She was successful because she completed her journey. One of the major lessons she offers

LeGloahec 3 Americans in regards to her cause is that there is never a finish line. Civic engagement has no deadline and it takes the commitment of many different individuals to make change. Granny D was aware of how to wield the power of her age in order to inform other Americans about an issue that many politicians would detest if the message were spoken from anyone younger or of another race/ethnicity. To the media and men in Washington, Granny D was seen as merely a cute, old woman. It is pertinent to see that this identity held political power. Although Granny D is commemorated here as a feminist and that she challenged the concept of womens work, she is better known for challenging the mindset of the country because of her individual motivations. Feminism and pro-women efforts are visible in America today, but it is Granny Ds age that makes her story significant in the larger discourse of Women and Gender Studies.

Age and Gender Libscomb (2006) claims that ageism is missing in Women Studies because second wave feminism started with young women, not the older generation. At a certain point, a womens gender becomes second to their identity. It behooves us to focus on both the power and marginalization caused by a womans age. There is a lack of labor market participation for the elderly because with old age there is the implication that there is a lack of ability. Just as the male worker has been seen as the ideal worker due to socially constructed, masculine traits of

LeGloahec 4 strength and intelligence, so has the younger worker been preferred over the elderly (Sweet and Meiksins 2008). Calasanti (2006) considers age an organizing principle of power that forms the idea of the Other just as class, race, and gender do. If age is a factor for segregation than does gender further segregate men and women as they age, or bring them closer as equals? Work in the form of a job or career implies a humans usefulness and a daily contribution to society. This is not an advocacy for men and women to work their entire lives but to look at work as a continuum and that being on Social Security or retiring from a career does not mean a person is no longer useful. If one is not working then they are seen as helpless and their agency is stripped away. In fact, Calasanti (2010:18) contests that ageism is factored into a companies recruitment policies and that a marginalization is created with a decrease in income, erosion of pensions, proposals to reform Social Security. Essentially, there is a lack of a labor market for the elderly. This may not be entirely problematic if the work post career can be seen as equally as valuable in society. Haddock (2001:256) comments that, A career is a much smaller part of our lives than we can possibly imagine at the time, and that it distracts us from our real work. Haddock not only ventured to Alaska to save a fishing village from being bombed, but also dedicated herself to her husband for ten whole years while he suffered from Alzheimers disease. To say these acts were not real work or was not a labor of love would be to discredit a persons commitment to others and his/her beliefs. Women are prized for their beauty and their youth and when more years are added to ones life, that beauty is transformed. American culture is biased to appreciate the beauty of

LeGloahec 5 young womens bodies rather than that of young and old women. The advertising world and programs like Social Security only enforce this social fact. Haddock (2001:127) commented that, When old women look at young women, especially beautiful young women, we are stuck with such a mix of feelings. She goes on to explain that being young and attractive is the essence of being female in America and that if you are lucky to be like that when you are young, there is a sense of envy because that person is still inside of you wanting to look beautiful and turn heads (127). She concludes that the loss of this beauty can be made bearable through the friendship and collaboration between the generations. There is power in beauty as women for centuries have used their physical attributes to acquire wealth and privilege. As a source of feminine strength, youthful beauty can allow many women to feel useful, to make change, or to get what they want.. As the advertising industries is aware, sex sells. Furthermore, the feminine beauty can land women some very interesting paid work in the United States but even female athletes, models and the sex-workers lose their youthful body at some point.

Work as a Fulfillment of Human Potential Womens work is varied and dynamic based on how each woman wields their strengths. A Marxist perspective would argue that human nature is defined by creativity and that our work is what we should enjoy most about our lives. Work should essentially be the fulfillment of our human potential, not simply a way to survive in a capitalist society (Sheth 2004). Has womens

LeGloahec 6 work confined to the home (childcare and house-keeping) been a reflection of human nature in a true sense-as if women are doing what comes natural to them? Women are traditionally seen as mothers first and foremost (Libscomb 2006). Many women are content with being mothers and wives while others pursue the highest degrees in their field and could care less about having children. And then there is the woman who wants to be successful in a career and raise a family. Is there potential to do both these days? The answer is yes if one thinks of work on a continuum and if the dynamic of good work is redefined.

Granny D Project As students in Keene States Women and Gender Studies Capstone class, my peers and I began the task of preserving the legacy of New Hampshire citizen Doris Haddock, later known as Granny D. We did this by utilizing the archives from her life present in the Mason Library and by holding a group interview with N.H. citizens who knew her. The significance of the group interview was that it aligned with feminist principles of recording womens oral history. Our efforts were by no means exhaustive but they provided a slice of oral history that contributes to feminist practice and theory. To further explore my interest regarding womens work, I posed the following question: The concept of work can encompass many things. One can work for pay like in a company or a restaurant, a business. You can volunteer and work in a cause through advertising, which many of you probably know. And, you can work at home taking care of children or grandchildren. We know that Granny D has worked in many

LeGloahec 7 different ways, whether or not she has always called it work. So for my question for you is: what has the concept of working meant to you throughout you life? And, for those of you who are grandparents and great-grandparents, how has this role affected what work means to you?

My question to N.H. citizens garnered responses from a male and female citizen, which were both indicative of the complexity of work as a satisfying endeavor, and of the conventional binary between women and mens public speaking. David Blairs response can be interpreted as more active/aggressive in the way that he spoke first after the question was asked and that his voice sounded steady, while his comments conveyed a sense of pride in his work. David spoke with confidence and ease and replied, I think its not what we do, but who we are that really matters. Sue Hay response could be interpreted as passive as she took the time to gather her words and expressed sadness and confusion about work throughout her life. She referred to work as being an area of dissonance because the work that provided her with an income did not consistently align with her activist and/or motherly roles. David continued by saying how work should be consistent with our deepest values and principles. He directly related this idea to the way Doris performed her work. He also alluded to the importance of being true to oneself and that in being yourself, work becomes a satisfying endeavor. David did not specify any differences between types of work (volunteer, paid job, etc.) and so his reference to being true to oneself is purely subjective. His testament about authenticity is all too true, but as a hegemonic participant (white male in his late-middle age),

LeGloahec 8 his ability to be himself may have been an easier endeavor than for his female counterparts. His intersectionality must not be omitted in light of keeping with the goal of attaining feminist oral history. In the narrative about her passion for volunteering and service, Sue comments that she could only reach for activism because it was not at the forefront of her job. As she talked, she touched on the role of being a mother and that this role provides an invitation to think about the whole. When Sue references being whole, it is suffice to say that she is alluding to the same concept of being true to oneself that David spoke of. Parenting is a form of work and is arguably the best type of work to reveal a persons passions and insecurities because of the role modelposition parents intrinsically embody. Sue and David and their fellow N.H. citizens helped to contribute to a historic project. The group of Granny D supporters, friends, and neighbors provided narratives about their appreciation of Granny D and are therefore vital voices to the larger goal of telling womens lived experiences. This group interview followed feminist principles because the oral history gathered at this group interview was structured as a conversation and not as an interrogation. The questions asked were equally as important and powerful as the responses given and our group and professor facilitated the talk rather than probed for the answers we wanted to hear. For the group of student interviewers, their personal biases of the subject were acknowledged beforehand, as best as possible. This was in attempt to be cognizant of expectations that can arise when interviewers are looking to create knowledge through oral history. Gluck (2006:361)

LeGloahec 9 comments on the uniqueness of womens oral history by suggesting that the emphasis on subjectivity, on capturing the rhythm of womens daily lives, led to a greater tolerance for a more open and fluid interview, and even for lengthy digressions. The subjectivity of the interviewer is critical because as Anderson and Jack (1991:19) remind us, the researcher is an active participant in qualitative research.

Exploring Work Through a Feminist Lens In an effort to keep feminist practices focused on an awareness of subjectivity and a commitment in sharing womens voices, the concept of womens work is undergoing critique. Work is a not a word limited by one definition. When feminists discuss womens work, it is usually in reference to the lack of pay they receive or the stereotypical roles that society creates for women i.e. teachers, nurses, secretaries. If womens work is assumed as paid, it is said with the understanding that men make more to the dollar than woman for the same job. Work as a noun offers an extensive meaning as cited in The Oxford American Dictionary (2005):
1. 1. An activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result 2. Such an activity as means of earning an income; employment 3. A task or tasks to be undertaken; something a person or thing has to do 4. Something done or made

Disassociating income with work is imperative in understanding womens roles in the last century. Although both women and men have referred to domestic tasks as a type of work,

LeGloahec 10 written knowledge and mainstream news have not always conveyed womens work as valuable in an economic context. Understandably, tasks that do not earn money cannot be appreciated in a competitive, capitalistic society. This social fact may partially be the motivation for Doris Haddocks journey across eleven of the fifty United States. Although her cause was directed on Campaign Finance Reform, Haddock saw the social injustices increase because of where money was being allocated.

Ninety Years of Work Doris Haddock had a steady job in a shoe factory for many decades in order to support her family. In some ways, this was her career whether or not it was how she wanted to earn an income. Haddock did not think of herself as shoe factory worker first and foremost but she comments that she loved her job of being a production-cost estimator (pricing the shoes) and was the second highest paid female in New Hampshire at one point. Throughout her personal account on her walk across America, she remembers all the ways she has worked for her country, for her children, for herself. Haddocks first account of earning money is when she and her sister babysat for a quarter an hour when she was ten so she could eventually buy a three-dollar Girl Scout uniform. Her first job outside of her hometown of Laconia was as a servant girl in Nantucket. Her love of acting and performing in plays landed her the role of mending and making costumes for the

LeGloahec 11 theater throughout her time at Emerson College. She volunteered at her church and even created a Girls Friendly Group so the young girls in her town could learn to mend dresses and then attend a dance with boys. Her activist spirit was strong as demonstrated by the work she and her husband performed to destroy Project Chariot; a project intended to destroy an Alaskan fishing village. Her role as maternal figure and mothers work took on new meaning when she had two kids, then eight grandchildren, and finally sixteen great-grandchildren at the time of her death in 2010. Furthermore, her role as a wife in which she was married for 62 years demonstrates her most selfless work as she spent ten years of her life caring for her husband before he passed away (Haddock 2001). Her decision to channel her activist spirit and continue working at ninety years old for Campaign Finance reform was strangely not surprising for those who knew her.

Evolution of Womens Work Various feminist movements can take credit for advancing women into the job market and opening up new types of jobs for them, but the shifting American economy has also made it necessary for women to work outside of the home. Sweet and Meiksins (2008), both male, are authors of Changing Contours of Work: Jobs and Opportunities in the New Economy, and conscious of it or not, write to a middle class audience. Their information appears legitimate, as it is consistent with the history my peers and I learned in primary and secondary school.

LeGloahec 12 However, the authors objective voice implies that all American families had viewed the father as the breadwinner but that 21st century economy calls for two forms of income. In comparison to twenty-six countries, the Unites States ranks relatively low in employment and number of hours worked yet has one of the highest populations of women contributing to that employment. From the perspective of Sweet and Meiksins (2008), womens work in the United States existed in factories during the Industrial Revolution then became strictly domestic in the 1940s and 1950s and come the end of the 20th Century, included a greater number of paying positions in male-dominated fields. Although there is truth to be found in Sweet & Meiksins claim that womens work in the United States has moved to different areas-it is still a generalization, and a generalization centered on income. For non-White and lower class women, this may have not been the road that they or their familys females have taken. Single mothers provide an example of a demographic which has had to both work outside the home and depend on other women or services to care for their children. It is not fair to say that only women have been burdened with house keeping and child rearing. However, issues dealing with gender and work are often considered womens problems (Sweet and Meiksins 2008). Gerson (2010:78) further points out, When work and family demands conflict, mothers are responsible for the home and fathers are duty bound to support their wives and children. Even Haddock (2001:214) remarks that her husband, made a point of not helping with housework or cooking, as he thought that would only encourage my weakness toward careerism. She adds a caveat by saying that he occasionally cooked. The

LeGloahec 13 implication of her statement is that her husbands beliefs were very much in line with the times and with the age of his wife.

Aging is a Lifelong Lesson How do women want to be remembered? Does the role of mother or wife define them or does each woman place a hierarchy on their own set of identities? In respecting Granny D for all that she identified herself with, we must be conscious of why she was valued. Doris Haddock knew she was an empowered individual who loved herself for all the jobs, activities, and passions that were embedded into her life. Haddock would not have challenged the country to consider Campaign Finance Reform if she had felt less than confident in her capabilities as an elderly woman. Her ninety years of age motivated her to make her last ten years of her life significant enough that she would become an American icon. If life is a never-ending lesson that we are always learning, then Haddocks age was a vehicle for political action that encouraged Americans that there is always more work to do, always more we can learn about ourselves. Haddocks own book, Granny D: Walking Across America in My Ninetieth Year, provides a reductionist-style biography of her at the end of the book: About the Author: Doris Haddock is a retired shoe-factory worker and great-grandmother of twelve. She lives in Dublin, New Hampshire (Haddock: 2001). Despite this section needing to be brief from an editorial standpoint, the question I ask is: why was her identity captured in two labels? Wasnt she a

LeGloahec 14 dedicated wife, an activist, and even a candidate for Senator? Feminist epistemologies are critical to Women and Gender Studies discourse so that feminist writers can be critical thinkers. In regards to Haddocks book, who felt that this biography was the best description of Granny D? Was it a man, her editor, or even herself that wrote it? The section About the Author (while limited in space) gives a glimpse of what Haddocks legacy was for the common person picking up her book. Although one can read the book and her other profound speeches to learn her legacy and history, the label of a retired show-factory worker places Haddocks profession, the way in which she earned an income, as the most important feature about her life. A paradox is presented in this short sentence, as Haddock was a great-grandmother (not just a mother or grandmother) and a shoe-factory worker who held a high position. How knowledge is written implies the power a person or event has. This sentence states that being a great-grandmother was only glorified if she was great and if she had held a paying job as well.

And We Walk On What a woman does with her years is equally as important as how she is a caregiver, how she volunteers her time or how she earns a living. To have hierarchies within the framework of work, even just amongst the female gender, is extremely problematic. The life of Doris Haddock, the infamous and beloved Granny D, provides personal narratives to almost one

LeGloahec 15 hundred years of womens work. Her life opportunities were not as accessible as every other woman in the United States, but for a white, heterosexual, working-class female, she worked as she was expected and as she wanted. Societal forces will place women into certain roles but free will and interesting personalities are far from absent when observing the history of women in the Twentieth Century. In remembering all the ways womens lives are shaped, one might agree with Granny Ds words of wisdom: To live a long life attentively is to finally see it all in one connected view. As I conclude this paper, I am reminded that the controversy of womens work is never removed from the news and politics. Recently this month, Ann Romney, the wife of Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, has been accused by Hilary Rosen, a Democratic strategist, that Romney has never actually worked a day in her life (DellAntonia 2012). Ms. Romney defends herself by saying that raising five boys was hard work- and I dont doubt her! Rosens argument implies that work has an economic value and the fact that Ms. Romney has never earned a paycheck constitutes that she hasnt really worked. Perhaps if the focus was taken off women as the sole child-rearers and parenting was seen as hard work, then Ms. Romney would be facing this criticism. Wouldnt politicians argue that raising capable and healthy children only adds to economy because children who are supported are more likely to be involved and active citizens? Presidential elections become a hot spot for personal attacks but they bring to light the underlying stereotypes and judgments that exist in our culture. If we take a functionalist point of view as Granny D offers us by considering our lives as existing in one

LeGloahec 16 connected view, than we can start to validate work as a choice that reflects our multiple identities.

LeGloahec 17 References

Anderson, Kathryn and Dana C. Jack. 1991. Learning to Listen: Interview Techniques and Analyses. Pp. 11-25 in Womens Words: The Feminist Practice of Oral History., edited by Sherma Berger Gluck and Daphne Patai. New York:Routledge. Berger Gluck, Sherna. 2006. Womens Oral History: Is It So Special? Pp. 357-383 in Handbook of Oral History, edited by Thomas L. Charlton et.al. New York: Alta Mira Press. Blair, David. 28 February 2012. N.H. Citizens Group Interview Keene State College. Keene, NH. PersonalInterview. Calasanti, Toni et al. 2006. Ageism and Feminism: From Et Cetera to Center. NWSA Journal. 18.1: 13-30. Dell'Antonia, KJ. April 12, 2012. Did Ann Romney Work? The New York Times. Gerson, Kathleen. 2010. The Unfinished Revolution: How A New Generation Is Reshaping Family, Work, and Gender in America. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Haddock, Doris. 2001. Granny D: Walking Across America in My Ninetieth Year. New York: Villard Books. Hay, Sue, 28 February 2012. N.H. Citizens Group Interview Keene State College. Keene, NH. PersonalInterview. Lipscomb, Valeria Barnes. 2006. We Need a Theoretical Base: Cynthia Rich, Womens Studies, and Ageism. NWSA Journal 18.1: 3-12. Sheth, Falguni A. 2004. "Labor, work, and citizenship: A study in the meaning and implications of the concept of work in Hegel, Marx, Arendt, and Kittay (Eva Feder Kittay, Hannah Arendt, Karl Marx, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel)." Dissertation Abstracts International. Section A: Humanities & Social Sciences 64, no. 08: 2929. Sweet, Stephen and Peter Meiksins. 2008. Changing Contours of Work: Jobs and Opportunities In the New Economy. London: Pine Forge Press.

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Work. 2005. New Oxford American Dictionary 2nd edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press Inc.