{"id":1476,"date":"2015-07-07T07:50:00","date_gmt":"2015-07-07T11:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.silvercentury.org\/2017\/09\/is-a-generation-of-powerful-women-turning-age-into-an-advantage-not-exactly\/"},"modified":"2018-05-02T08:49:11","modified_gmt":"2018-05-02T12:49:11","slug":"is-a-generation-of-powerful-women-turning-age-into-an-advantage-not-exactly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/78.142.243.82\/~silvercentury\/2015\/07\/is-a-generation-of-powerful-women-turning-age-into-an-advantage-not-exactly\/","title":{"rendered":"Is a Generation of Powerful Women Turning Age into an Advantage? Not Exactly"},"content":{"rendered":"

“Could the current cohort of eminent women in their 60s herald an era when aging, for women, ceases to be an enemy, and even becomes a friend?\u201d asks Liza Mundy in the recent issue of the Atlantic<\/em>. (And could that magazine actually be taking a progressive position on aging<\/a>?)<\/p>\n

As she observes, it\u2019s an intriguing idea and also a profoundly counterintuitive one, given the notorious dearth of women in the halls of power. Though she lays out clearly why having a vagina is a handicap, I wish she\u2019d explained why wrinkles are not. But no, to Mundy, age remains a liability. It\u2019s an advantage only in an ageist and sexist context: an attribute for women to deploy in order to make their late-life power more palatable to others. I should have known as much from the title, \u201cPlaying the Granny Card<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mundy focuses on Hillary Clinton, Janet Yellen and Elizabeth Warren, all overachievers who raised families and built impressive careers over many decades in public service. \u201cIn a fairer world, they might have peaked earlier,\u201d she writes, setting out the obstacles that working women face. A steeper ladder to a glass ceiling: men tend to be promoted on the basis of perceived potential and women on the basis of performance, \u201ca phenomenon that results in women getting to the top later, if they get there at all.\u201d Putting husbands first. The wage gap, a measure of the cost of putting children first. Mothers of young children also face \u201ca set of belittling stereotypes sometimes referred to as the \u2018maternal wall.\u2019\u201d Another kind of gender bias also hampers workplace advancement. Moms are seen as warm but not competent, while less traditionally feminine women\u2014such as lesbians, athletes, feminists and working women\u2014are seen as competent but not warm. (Men don\u2019t have to choose.)<\/p>\n

Sexism, check; Mundy gets it. But when it comes to ageism\u2014not to mention the noxious intersection between the two forms of prejudice\u2014she has a long way to go. At least the word appears, in this sentence: \u201cTo be sure, female aging is not without liabilities: some research suggests that ageism may hit women especially hard, with women being perceived as old at a younger age than men are.\u201d<\/p>\n

May \u201chit women especially hard?\u201d No feminist doubts the existence of what Susan Sontag in 1972 called \u201cthe double standard of aging.\u201d And \u201cperceived as old?\u201d Reinforcing the notion that appearance is paramount, this ageist phrase gives all the power to the perceiver and equates aging with the loss of social capital. By using it, unexamined, Mundy colludes in that loss of capital. And as is so often the case, \u201cold\u201d serves as a placeholder for a suite of undesirable characteristics that have nothing to do with chronological age. Let\u2019s guess: undesirable, incompetent, passive.     <\/p>\n

The good news, according to Mundy? We might have a fix for that pesky warmth\/competence double bind, epitomized by Clinton\u2019s famous \u201clikability\u201d deficit. Apparently people may feel more comfortable with, and less hostile towards, ambitious women when they get older. Why? Because in an ageist world, age marginalizes, and this makes powerful women less threatening. Being a grandmother boosts \u201clikability\u201d too, because grandmothers are seen as sweet and docile. When women embody ageist stereotypes, positioning themselves as grannies or \u201clittle old ladies\u201d or \u201csexless seniors\u201d in order to move up in the world, this behavior doesn\u2019t compensate for sexism. It compounds sexism by offering another work-around for assertive women to come across as though they\u2019re not. <\/p>\n

Mundy writes, \u201cClinton\u2019s feminism and ambition have contributed to her image problems. Might she now be in a window\u2014call it early elderliness\u2014when she can get credit for warmth without losing her reputation for competence?\u201d Early elderliness, really? Now there\u2019s a winning campaign slogan. How about \u201cprime potential?\u201d The elder-blogging universe brims with testimonials to the energy, confidence, experience, emotional maturity and self-awareness of older women, free at last to be their full, powerful selves. Examples in the flesh abound as well. Missing from Mundy\u2019s position, these attributes are the true advantage that time imparts to postmenopausal women. They are ideal candidates for leadership. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Could the current cohort of eminent women in their 60s herald an era when aging, for women, ceases to be an enemy, and even becomes a friend?\u201d asks Liza Mundy in the recent issue of the Atlantic<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Read more Is a Generation of Powerful Women Turning Age into an Advantage? Not Exactly<\/span> ›<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

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