Are you my mother? I can’t remember your face

by Marisa Gallardo

“Are you my mother?” What would you do if your children make this question when you return from your job? Nowadays it seems to be acceptable that women work and try to be as men. But, does society really accept women outside home? Do men really accept that women leave the home to go to work? In the story “Are you my mother?” P.O.Eastman, the author, seems not to be too convinced. It is easy to notice a clear point of view: women were made for attending housework and taking care of their children.

Through lovely pictures, the story creates a sweet mental image of a careful mother bird which is incubating her egg and waiting for the moment in which her baby bird comes out. She is ready to protect and look after him. This should be her only concern. Even the kerchief that the mother bird wears around her head may be associated with women who only take care of their home. Some years ago it was commonly watched on television advertisements about cleaning products which showed a housewife wore a kerchief around her head and an apron. The housewife claimed that these products were her best allies in the household cleaning because they not only simplified the task but left her more time to take care of children.

Another detail that seems to reveal the true role that society imposed on women is the absence of a father bird. It is considered correct that men are those who are away from home, either working or with friends, but never at home looking after children. Who better than women to deal with this? If not look what happens with the baby bird, when his mother leaves the nest to go for food. The vulnerable baby bird has to overcome many dangerous situations to find his mother and none of these would have happened if his mother would have stayed in the nest.

Despite the fact that, nowadays women play an important role in society, chauvinistic beliefs insist on positioning women only serving the needs of the home and waiting for the arrival of their protector men. It is not a coincidence that the rescue of the baby bird in the story is made by a snort, a machine that is usually controlled by men.