“When men cook food, it’s art…but when women cook, it’s their duty.”
These lines are iconic and thought-provoking. When I heard that quote from English Vinglish, It made me think of the double standards people have for men and women, cooking being one of them.
Women, despite having careers of their own still have to take care of their household after marriage. After a tiring day at work, they still have to get home and do the household work, with no one helping them. The respect people have for women does not change whether they’re housewives or working women. The misogyny people have in their minds does not change. They believe that work at home is for a woman.
It starts in childhood. Girls are given cooking toys to play with when they’re young. They are usually taught how to cook by their female relatives so that they know how to cook when they’re married. But why is this? Why are only women taught how to cook?
When men cook, they’re praised. People are happy to find that these men have the talent to cook! How amazing! It is rare to see someone who cooks in the household who isn’t a woman.
It is due to society’s standards. They think cooking should be known by a woman and that she should cook well when she’s married and that isn’t something worth praising. Why don’t we have the same standards for men?
And it’s not just cooking. Men are praised for cleaning their house, taking care of their children, and being stay-at-home dads when this is something that women do every day but aren’t praised for it. When men perform roles that are traditionally performed by women, society applauds them for it while ignoring the contribution women make. We must keep equal attitudes for both genders.
When someone is good at something, we should appreciate them. However, we can see that not everyone appreciates women. If we actually appreciated women for the contributions they make, it would empower them and the world would be a better place for everyone.