A platform for voices supporting women's rights
TV Chef and self-proclaimed feminist, Nigella Lawson has recently stated that Feminism has lead to women feeling a sense of dread in the kitchen.
Modern women are eager to abandon stereotypical roles of female domestic servitude, but this seems to have led to a general disillusionment with the kitchen. Ms. Lawson believes that cooking skills are important for everyone, for both genders. She also suggests that we should encourage a wide interest in cooking for everyone, crucially without reverting to traditional gender roles.
Ms. Lawson made reference to the inspiration behind her book “How to be a Domestic Goddess” which was released in 2000. She noticed that women increasingly seemed afraid of cooking and
“home was never more than a stop-off from work.” Despite misinterpretations of the book’s title leading to criticism of Ms. Lawson believing that a woman’s place was “in the kitchen”, she believes it to be an important contribution to feminism in its own right. The book was written to “memorialise” her mother and one of her sisters, two strong women who had both died at a young age. According to Ms. Lawson, cooking was always a part of the conversation with them.
Whilst it is understandable that women should shun the very thing that is so iconic in female suppression and servitude, let us not deny ourselves the pleasure of cooking. As such an important part of everyday life, modern women should not be afraid to spend time cooking and the enjoyment it brings, simply because of the connotations it has had in the past.