Low wages structurally push working women to accept male financial protection.

Evidence

It is also understandable that a shopgirl, an office worker, or a secretary should not want to give up the advantages of having a male to lean on. I have already said that it is an almost irresistible temptation for a young woman to be part of a privileged caste when she can do so simply by surrendering her body; she is doomed to have love affairs because her wages are minimal for the very high standard of living society demands of her; if she settles for what she earns, she will be no more than a pariah: without decent living accommodations or clothes, all amusement and even love will be refused her. Virtuous people preach asceticism to her; in fact, her diet is often as austere as a Carmelite’s; but not everyone can have God as a lover: she needs to please men to succeed in her life as a woman. — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 1919

Categorization

• SEED: The ‘virtuous preach asceticism to the woman whose wages force her into dependence’ tension could anchor an essay on how moralism blames structural victims.
• XREF: connects to: Low female wages stem from women’s disarmed position, not fewer needs. — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 265; Beauty work is a servitude whose costs trap women economically. — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 1568; Male protections disguised as benefits actually mask women’s subordination — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 1972 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Male protections disguised as benefits actually mask women’s subordination #corroborates (0.85) — Simone de Beauvoir, The Second Sex, 1972
• Black women themselves pressured men into the breadwinner role #complicates (0.75)