If you've ever worked for a woman boss like that, Mark (my sister did, it
nearly destroyed her, and I've known many other people who suffered under
that particular tyranny; they were common in journalism around 20 years ago,
common enough to identify a "type"), you'll know what I mean. They were
particularly hard on women employees - much harder than men in the same
position - and bore the bitter scars of their struggle to get where they did
in a world where men were unarguably dominant. The highest position they
could achieve in journalism was generally Women's Editor or editor of a
woman's magazine, although sometimes - very rarely - they made it out of the
corner. I knew many people who suffered under those tyrannies, and they did
not occur only in journalism but in every profession that was traditionally
male-dominated. It did not happen to _all_ women who "made it", but it was
common enough. And yes, they seem absolutely an example of how women's
relationships can be skewed into poisonous competitiveness in a power
structure that only works on "male" values.
I've generally preferred working with and for women in my working life, as
they are on the whole much more straightforward to negotiate with than men;
my agent, my three editors and three publishers (on three continents) are
all professional women, and great women too; but the exceptions have been
extreme.
The woman who sacked me for being a mother was from another, younger
generation who called themselves "post-feminist".
On 4/4/06 10:14 AM, "Mark Weiss" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Now it seems to be a way of
> discrediting the very broad advances of women by claiming that
> they've only advanced by becoming like men or worse.
I don't think identifying that particular syndrome does anything of the
sort. Rather, the success of those women who adopted the male mores of their
workplaces with a vengeance rather than challenging them obscures the
achievements of those women who did something else.
Have a great holiday; perhaps we'll be talking about poetry by the time you
get back.
All best
A
Alison Croggon
Blog: http://theatrenotes.blogspot.com
Editor, Masthead: http://masthead.net.au
Home page: http://alisoncroggon.com
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