Education Is the Only Key of Life for Turkish Women Essay

Education right, right to vote and stand for election are basic rights of humanbeings and the elements of democracy. These rights are essential to prove the existence of a person in society. Altough, these rights were given to Turkish women before many western countries, Turkey fell behind in applying and improving these rights. In many parts of Turkey, women are not allowed to use their rights and it is still debated that should women have job, should they get education and basically, how women should live. Even if, there are many dissenting opinions about if women should be educated or not, Turkish women should be educated to be able to get their economic freedom and be aware of their rights.. Being able to make own decisions, living independent is crucial necessity for people and having economic freedom is the first step to be independent. However, in Turkey, either women are not allowed to work or they prefer to be housewifes. When they are not married, they live with their families and they depend on them, after they marry, they are dependent on their husbands. Either way, they never live their life the way they want to and they are content with what they have. In Turkey, if a woman works, she is accused of not being good mother or wife. Yet, on the contrary, if woman work, she feels herself productive, effective, social and only then,she gains self-confidence. Meghan O’Rourke says, â€Å"Only by working, can women can have a fully â€Å"flourishing† life† As she says, only a working woman gets whatever she wants and so, she becames more beneficial for her families. Also, if women work, she supports family financially and it brings to having high life standards. However, in patriarchal societies, being independent women mostly causes problems in family. Times of India’s IDiva research shows that, The survey of over 24,000 adults in 23 countries, conducted by Reuters/Ipsos and released on the eve of International Women’s Day, showed that people from India (54 percent), Turkey (52 percent), Japan (48 percent), China, Russia, Hungary (34 percent each) and South Korea (33 percent) were most likely to agree that women should not work. 52 percent women in Turkey think that women’s place is at home because, women and man not equal in working arena. When women work, she is still charged of house chores and these chores take a lot of time, besides these chores women have to take care of children. So, it is really hard to carry out all together these works and when women cannot balance house work and job, man began to complain. These complaints are another reason for women’s stress therefore, women are fed up with everything and they give up their job. If they do not, it causes serious damages in family, and if women insist to continue her job, it even may leads to divorce. So, many women have to give up their job fort he sake of family. Another reason why women should get education is that education brings women awareness, only an educated women can be aware of her rights. Being aware of rights is important for women because, women are exposed to violence, rape. Also, they are forced to marry when they are children and in Turkey, man can have a second wife and women are forced to live together. According to KSGM’s research, 39 percent of Turkish women are exposed to violonce by their husbands and 48. 5 percent women cannot tell anyone about violance that they are exposed. Women are ashamed of being subjected violance and also, due to they afraid of their husband, they do not tell anyone. Mostly, they cannot tell because they depend on their husband and their families usually do not protect them†¦ After violance, one of the biggest problem in Turkey is child brides. Especially in east of Turkey, little girls are forced to marry a man who is older than them for Money. According to surveys, â€Å"Turkey has one of the highest rates of juvenile marriages in the world† ( Tokyay). Also, the survey points out that, in Turkey there are 28 percent of child brides, and 41 percent of this is unofficial religious marriages. Tokyay). To challenge with these injustice, cruelty, and oppression they have to get education because if they get education, they become independent and aware of their rights therefore, they do not have to yield man anymore. They can sue their husband, their families that commit violance or force to marry and they can defend themselves. In a patriarchal society like Turkey, woman who are aware, and protect her own rights, is thought as insolet versus man and she is accused of losing femininity. In this type society, there are certain roles for man and women. Man are charged with taking care of his family, protecting his wife. As to women, â€Å" their main preoccupation, fostered by parents and educators alike, is â€Å" the pursuit of a wedding ring. † As one editor put it, college for women was the â€Å" world’s best marriage mart. † † (reed 4) They are raised to be perfect wifes who respect, trust, yield to their husbands. It does not matter how she is smart or successful, marriage is the only aim. If she does not have good marriage, she thinks that she is inadequate. Therefore, men see women as their properties. So, when a woman defends herself, resists again her husband, man takes this as disrespectfulness and disobedience. Not just man, also society think that if woman is smart and she has job, if she can live herself without man supporting, she is tought that she loses her femininity. â€Å" Collage girls, terrified lest they lose their â€Å"femininity† through any display of brains or serious study, learn to camouflage their intellegence or obediently empty their minds altogether ( Reed 3). They avoid to show their intellegence and talents because they are not supposed to think, they supposed to toe the line by told their husband or families. substaining and extending this redirection of women are the powerful moulders of public opinion: editors and writers of slick magazines for women, newspaper columnists, TV shows, movies, popular novels, pulps, and aii the rest. Indiously and unremittingly they warn women that even yearning to Express their intellects and talents would be â€Å" heavily paid for† by the loss of their â€Å"femeninity†Ã¢â‚¬  ( Reed 5). In All soap operas, all women magazines there are subtitles that manupulate women to stay at home and to be good wife. They teach them how they can make merry their husband or what they sould do to not lose their husband. Because all women should live for their husband, children and all they should think to protect this joyful life. So, if women put herself with brains and qualifications, it makes her unfeminine and not to proper for marry. To conclude, women should get education in order to be stronger, to be independent, to stand on her own legs. In patriarchal societies like Turkey, women should not yield to rules, traditions, on the contrary, they try to change society perspective because women shape the whole society.. As Mustafa Kemal Ataturk says, â€Å"Insan toplulugu kad? n ve erkek denilen iki cins insandan olusur. Kabil midir bu kutlenin bir parcas? n? ilerletelim, otekini ihmal edelim de kutlenin butunu ilerleyebilsin? Mumkun mudur ki bir cismin yar? s? topraga bagl? kald? kca, oteki yar? s? goklere yukselebilsin ? †. society will progress, upgrade as long as women have a real sense of community. Finally, first and foremost a woman should get education for herself if she wants to make her life meaningful. otherwise, she will be nothing but man’s slave.