To the Editor:
We find several incorrect assumptions in Ms. Gosse's letter to the editor, in which she laments the "trend towards motherhood among Ivy League Women" ("Women: Leave Home", Oct. 3, 2005). She makes the point that if women are not in the so-called "high-powered careers," they are leaving the important decisions of a society up to one sex. This argument presupposes an antagonistic relationship between the sexes. No one should assume that all men are misogynistic or that housewives are powerless in our society. If public officials or business professionals are not catering to citizens of each sex, housewives have a vote and a dollar just as powerful as the rest of us who have no plans for being a Senator or a CEO.
We are greatly disappointed to see her judging this institution's women -- and women in general -- for freely choosing whatever life they will. She neglects to recognize that what she herself considers the perfect way to spend a woman's "prime adult years" may not be what each individual woman desires. It is a noble goal for this country to ensure that women have the same opportunities as men - yet this nation is founded upon the free exercise of one's will, the "pursuit of happiness." Dartmouth's women are among the most intelligent and highly educated in the world. If we cannot entrust their lives to their own judgment, then we ask: what is the point of education in the first place?