Once upon a time, a woman's life began and ended at the threshold of her home. Her whole life revolved around the inside of a house where her only duty was to keep it clean, prepare food, look after children, iron her husband’s clothes, and silently endure domestic abuse. When she dared to speak up, society, including her family, would say, “Let it go, dear, you’re a woman and it’s your duty,” or they would say, “Suffer it, dear, you are a woman.” “It’s your duty.” That silence was inherited, passed down like generational trauma.
Fast forward, now she speaks, she leads, and she protests. She wins. The transformation of women’s roles through time is not just about clothes or career paths, but a revolution of thought, resistance, and power. This piece charts the journey from then to now, and the future she’s building.
Back then, marriage was sold as salvation. Girls were taught that a wedding would set them free. This term was believed by most women because they didn’t have their own freedom in their own home. They thought that once they got married, their freedom, rights, and the ability to study further would happen, but the truth is, most women get scammed through these offers.
In a patriarchal society, women are told to be in a box where they could only be wives, daughters, mothers, caregivers. Education for girls was rare. Marriage was the ultimate option for them. Their voices were expected to be soft, sweet, and have fewer opinions. If they did anything beyond that, there was rebellion, and in those times, women's identities were tied to husbands, fathers, or sons. Her only worth was in gold, dowry, and domestic skills, never in her dreams or decisions.
But even in those times, there were powerful women in history like Indira Gandhi, Rani Lakshmibai, Sarojini Naidu, Kalpana Chawla, and countless warriors. They disrupted the system, sometimes quietly, sometimes like thunder.
Fast forward to today. Women are known as engineers, artists, entrepreneurs, activists, politicians. She is earning her own money, having her own solo trips, speaks loudly, laughs loudly, wears the clothes she likes, and has opinions and choices. Today, education has become a right, not a luxury. Today, women have legal protection, social awareness, and feminist movements which are bringing changes. Today’s girls are chasing their own dreams and ambitions, stepping onto the roles which were once denied to them. From Michelle Obama to Beyonce, Kamala Harris to Droupadi Murmu, women are claiming space once denied.
The world let her fly but demands are still shown.
Let’s be honest, despite all the talk of progress, modern society still struggles with deeply rooted gender issues. Across industries, whether in corporate offices, hospitals, or businesses, women are consistently paid less than men for doing the same job.
Safety remains a major concern. Women still face harassment in professional spaces, and the fear of walking alone at night remains very real. Even now, many women feel unsafe in public or at work, and unfortunately, the systems meant to protect them often fail to act.
Then there’s the pressure to fit beauty standards. Society still places more value on how a woman looks than on her intelligence, character, or abilities. These unrealistic standards continue to define a woman’s worth, limiting her freedom and self-expression.
MORE FREEDOM, SAME JUDGEMENT?
If you ask if there is any progress here, yes, there is progress, but not a complete one. Women have rights but are not respected enough, opportunities but not always accessible, louder but not always heard. In most places, freedom is promised, but conditions still apply.
Today’s woman is told she’s “free,” but that freedom is hugely managed. She must perform perfection, always presentable, ambitious, kind, but never too much.
As Gloria says in Barbie (2023):
“You have to never get old. Never be rude. Never show off. Never be selfish. Never fall down. Never fail. Never show fear. Never get out of line. It’s too hard! It’s too contradictory, and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you.”
This monologue struck a nerve because it captured exactly what it feels like to be a woman today: constantly edited, constantly judged, never quite enough.
What we call progress today is stitched together from centuries of resistance. The silence has been broken, the doors have opened for us, but even now, the shadows of the past still follow us.
Society says be free but hands us over a new rulebook which says we are allowed to speak as long as we are polite, we can shine as long as we don’t outshine.
True empowerment isn’t just about giving women opportunities, it's about changing how we see and treat women everywhere, every day. So yes, we’re farther than we’ve ever been. Until every woman is seen as whole, without edits, without expectations, we’ll keep pushing. Because womanhood isn’t a limitation, it’s a revolution in motion.
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