I am not saying you are blaming your friend, but the tone of voice does give that off. It is probably a cultural difference between you and I, so what you are saying and what I am reading are somewhat different.
I know, in any relationship, it is better to target the 'communication' or the 'relationship' as that is faulty, rather than the man or woman. Unfortunately, sometimes you can do your best to make your partner feel at home and feel loved and so on, but that does not translate to fixing the issues.
In our societies, the roles aren't really equal, but our speech and behaviour continues to reciprocate that. In my society, I know that mothers are seen like they are necessary to nurture a child, and that brings resistance to women working. Some mothers are made to feel guilty for having a career, because they think that if they become housewives, they would be better mothers. With these ideologies, then, at home, the mothers will see themselves as more important than the fathers, and the fathers will reciprocate that thinking and will feel left out. Luckily, I was grown in a household where my father did the laundry and cooking and cleaning whenever he could help out, although he did work, so it still was my mother's main role (she had quit working because she loves taking care of family). As someone who is gay, I realise how flawed the gender roles are. Some people would think a mother is necessary for a child to grow up, but then how do single-fathers do it? And gay couples too - scientifically, research shows that they are equal. Then, males are just as capable of being great parents, and what we need to tackle is gender roles in society and attitudes.
It definitely would be an interesting post to write, although it would have to be months from now - got already too many planned posts haha. And as penderis suggested, do drop by the BuddyUp discord; I found your post through the #post-spot there ;)
I think you make some valid points, I'll look forward to you writing about this in the future! Oh thank you, I'll stop by. Peace.
AN ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: @penderis/poetrybyjeremy, I must say I've really enjoyed this debate, your honesty and perspectives have given me food for thought, I thought it would be the ladies pointing their fingers..ha!haa! But it just shows how wrong we can be. Thank you. Peace.