From the "kitchen" to the world!

Vietnamese women in the 21st century have had many changes in function, position and role in family and society.

On the occasion of International Women's Day March 8, let's look back at the role of Vietnamese women from family, society and international level and answer the question of where the source of strength is so that Vietnamese women can complete all these missions.

Female soldiers in a militia in the North in 1967. (Source: TASS/GettyImages)

Vietnamese women in the eyes of men and in the eyes of traditional society seem to only hang around in the "kitchen" with an apron, with the hustle and bustle of taking care of their husbands and children. It is understandable, because if we consider cultural identity, Vietnam is one of the countries influenced by Chinese culture, especially Confucianism. And women in the concept of Confucianism always maintain strict moral standards, in which Tam tong and Tu duc are considered the top qualities. The image of Vietnamese women, sisters, and mothers working hard from dawn to dusk to take care of their husbands and children to be successful.

A woman's happiness is the happiness of her husband and children. A woman's joy is also the joy of her husband and children. A woman's happiness or suffering is also "choosing" the right husband. If she "unfortunately" marries a good husband, then she is a lucky woman. If she "unfortunately" marries a "bad" man, then her life is "over", she must live in misery for the rest of her life. A woman's world also revolves around the house, the family. We still hear somewhere, mothers say to their children: "you are my everything", wives say to their husbands: "you and your father are my everything"... A woman's limit is also her husband, children, and family.

Looking back at the process of building and defending the country of Vietnam, we see another side of women. We are proud but also saddened when Vietnamese women had to shoulder the great tasks of the country early: fighting the enemy, defending the country, raising the army and waiting for their husbands to return. Many could not wait because their husbands and children had sacrificed and had to shoulder the responsibility of being both mother and father in the family, and fulfilling their responsibilities to society - labor and production.

Thus, Vietnamese women have never just stayed “in the kitchen”. We have great Vietnamese mothers in legends such as Mother Au Co, Mother Thanh Giong; we have female heroes who make the enemy fear such as Ba Trung, Ba Trieu, Le Chan, Nguyen Thi Minh Khai, Ba Dinh...; we have intelligent women with open hearts who can change the history of the nation such as Queen Mother Duong Van Nga, Royal Concubine Y Lan...; we also have intelligent, sharp women who make the whole world admire such as Nguyen Thi Binh... Therefore, contrary to the perception that traditional Vietnamese women only stay in the family, only cultivate and take care of their own happiness.

The noble titles given to women today such as “Three Responsibilities”, “Good at State Affairs, Good at Housework” still make us wonder, because how can women do all these tasks well, do them excellently? There are 24 hours in a day, and in the office, women still have to take on all the work. Surely, no office “sympathizes” with employees who do not complete their tasks just because they are women.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/phu-nu-viet-nam-tu-nha-bep-ra-the-gioi-306853.html