MAINS 2014
GS1
10 marks
How does patriarchy impact the position of a middle class working woman in India?
WRITE IN
7 min
150 words
What the examiner wants
Explain how patriarchal norms shape the lives of middle-class working women at home and at work.
DiscussExplain the different sides of the issue, use evidence, and finish with a balanced view.
Demand-wise check
- 1Home: double burden of paid and unpaid care work, control over income, career subordinate to husband's transfer, marriage and motherhood penalties≈30 words
- 2Workplace: glass ceiling, wage gap, sexual harassment, few women in leadership, 'safe jobs' stereotypes≈30 words
- 3Society: mobility restrictions, safety concerns, moral policing, guilt about childcare≈30 words
- 4Change: education, income giving voice, laws (POSH, maternity benefit), shifting norms≈30 words
Open in about 20 words and close in about 20.
Answer plan
Patriarchy definedHomeWorkplaceSocietyPositive changesConclusion
Where marks usually go
- Writing about all women generally instead of middle-class working women
- Missing the positive side: income and education weakening patriarchy
Draw this
- Bar chart: minutes per day on unpaid domestic work, women vs men
Value addition
- DataWomen spend 299 minutes a day on unpaid domestic services versus 97 minutes for men.NSO Time Use Survey 2019
- LawMaternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2017 raised paid leave to 26 weeks and required creches in firms with 50 or more employees.Parliament, 2017
- ThinkerArlie Hochschild's 'The Second Shift' (1989) describes working women's unpaid home shift.Hochschild, 1989
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 7 minutes, then get it checked.