For many centuries, women have been oppressed all over the world. For example, African women have a high rate of illiteracy. Over 80% of African women can not read and write. In Eastern Europe, many women are unfortunate; they live below the poverty line. In America, it was not until 1920 that women got the right to vote. However, the history of American women is unlike the history of women from other places around the world. Women here created the feminist movement that gives to them many rights. When Americans women were fighting for equality and more rights, they dissociated other women from this struggle. Black women for example, lived under the conditions of slavery. These women worked as house cleaners in the house of the upper class and well-educated women that were protesting for more rights and equality. Yet, the protestors’ women did not act to end the miseries of the black women. To the contrary, they oppressed these women by treating them like slaves and like they were less that human. The women who demonstrated said that they were fighting for women right but not for black’s women rights.
I think this is the type of situation that Toni was referring to when she said to the new graduates; that they were going to be in the same privileged position that the step sister of Cinderella. She also pointed out the fact that the education that they received will offer them a lot of power; they will be so powerful that, they could influence other women’s destiny. In addition, Toni requested that they do so in positive way. More importantly, the author thinks that women’s sisterhood is sacred and symbolic. “You should not take part in the oppression of your sister,” this can be explained in this terms, we women are already victims of the society abuse and oppression; therefore no oppressed woman should be an oppressor.
For this reason, she requests to these newly graduated women not to participate in the oppression of their sisters. I believe that the author uses this metaphor to tell women to join on another and stop the oppression against women. Toni Morrison thinks that, most of the time women are victims of another woman. She also believes that this oppression should not have been existed, because all women are sisters. Women have the duty to help each other; to the contrary, some women become an obstacle for other women promotion in their career. For Toni Morrison, women have been dangerous and not agreeable to other women throughout history. I think with this fairly tale Cinderella, Toni Morrison emphasis the role of women in expression of persecution or enslavement of other woman.
I also concur with Toni Morrison when she said that women do violence to other women. I believe that these acts exist in today’s society. In fact, the role of women is crucial in meeting the big crises of the word. Women need to count on women to integrate our society much dominated by men. The truth is that in many Western countries women get the opportunity to be educated. They have office jobs; take a part in making decisions on many important issues. It appears that, the power of women is without limit. This power is despondently used to keep other women down and enslave them. Last week the New York Times reported that a CEO of a modeling agency was maneuvering to prevent other women from achieving their goal of model. The Times said that the women the CEO sensed were capable to become a CEO like her were not hired. Another story, reported by the news on TV, showed a woman that starved her kid to death. I also witnessed a scene at the hospital when I took my sister there. While my sister was troubled with pain, the nurse asked her to be quiet because she was having a conversation. I thought that, it’s was rude and inappropriate from a woman to another woman.
It is very important for women to be united in face of the multiple problems that the society is facing today. I believe that women have more sense of responsibility and decency than men do. Therefore, if women could help other women to be educated, and get better jobs, our world could be a better place to live. Because, women are our mothers, sisters and guardian angels, they are usually kind to men and their children. However, women cannot develop a relationship between women, and some times they oppressed other women. It is time to stop this attitude and be responsible for each othe