Nothing New Under the Sun

From the November 1957 Atlantic, Nora Johnson’s “Sex and the College Girl”. Some portions seem to be describing a very different world. Others are strikingly familiar to our own:

In other ages, women were not educated to expect so much, and consequently they were less frequently disappointed. A really mature girl can, of course, absorb her disappointment by saying to herself, “I can’t do all the things I wanted, but, instead of trying to, I can be much happier by doing my best in the few things that are possible to me.” Others never give up the hope of being able to manage everything—a husband, a career, community work, children, and all the rest. A few exceptional ones can manage it, but others end up with an ulcer, a divorce, a psychiatrist, or deep disappointment.

To read the whole thing you’d need to subscribe, which I recommend. Not only is the magazine great, but I find these archival bits fascinating.