I wonder why few people ever put pressure on men to have children. I mean, men sometimes feel patriarchal pressure to “pass their name on,” but I think that’s usually or mostly internal pressure.

Men mostly, at least in my experience, don’t feel judged for not having children. Society seems to accept that choice with a kind of neutral disregard, or at most a slightly raised eyebrow.

So many societal expectations change for individuals across gender and racial lines, so many it’s probably hard to keep track of them.

Thanks for your personal story illustrating this particular expectation.