love

In the 1800’s, the women responsibilities were to maintain order in the house, protect and discipline the students. In the 21st century, now women are not just responsible for cleaning, cooking and discipling children, instead women can now work and impose some of those tasks on their husbands. In the story “Our Deportment, or the Manners, Conduct, and Dress of Refined Society”, as the home is considered the “woman’s kingdom” and that it is the women responsibility to “make the lives of her husband and the dear ones committed to her trust, is the honored task which it is the wife’s province” (Gutenberg 1), most of their time is spent in the home making sure the home is kept under control and ready to serve her husbands and children. In reference to the speech by Emma Watson, she states that “we need to end gender inequality” (Watson 1), which in the 21st century it is coming closer to reality. Women now don’t have to remain at home all day, they can now work just like men and provide for their families the same way men do.

In “I Want a Wife” by Judy Brady, the author argues that the roles of a wife are unfair and more demanding than a husband's, thereby they are treated as lesser than a man. Brady supports her claim by first, introducing herself as a wife, showing her empirical knowledge; secondly, cataloging the unreasonable expectations of a wife; finally ending the essay with an emotional and thought-provoking statement, “My God, who wouldn’t want a wife?” Brady’s purpose is to expose the inequality between the roles of a husband and of a wife in order to show that women do not belong to men and to persuade women to take action and stand up for themselves. Based on when this essay was written and since it is about the impossible expectations of a wife, Brady was writing to feminists in the 1960s in order to rally them to create a change in the way people thought.

Judy Brady’s essay “I Want a Wife” is a stereotypical portrayal of a wife’s role in the 1970s, but this stereotype has evolved for wives and husbands over the past few decades. Husbands are partners with their wives in their relationship. Today, the role of financial provider and head of the household has shifted. Child rearing is not entirely the responsibility of the wife any longer. The roles of husbands and wives have changed in some areas since the 1970s, and in some ways have remained the same. Thus, we must examine what these changes are that have taken place.

An average, women during the 1960’s were held accountable for many responsibilities. Women led very different lives during this time period. Punctual, responsible, and reliable were just some of the many standards that were expected from society. At the age of twenty women were expected to be married; soon after they would become pregnant. Raising a family and devoting their lives to be the best housewives possible. Legally women made no earnings or any income for that matter. Child care and in vigorous chores were a part of their daily routine. Women had no say financially. Women had one duty, and that was to be a housewife. Men had all the control in marriages; after all they were the bread winners. Women were stuck in a vicious cycle of controlling and power hungry men. Comparing women from the 10960’s to the women in today’s generation is quite astonishing. The women’s rights movement fought for women to be free. Women no longer need to be chained to such degrading and depressing circumstances. Raising a family and having a husband is a beautiful goal most women dream of. However, we should also have the right to decide when we want to marry and to whom we believe is the right candidate. “Why I Want a Wife” written by Judy Brady raises a powerful message on women in the 1960’s. Judy touches upon the idea that women had constantly been expected to be in confined and submissive relationships. Brady perfectly depicts the

Male dominance. The essay, "I Want a Wife" was written during the second wave of the feminist movement in the United States. It was a period when the society was dominated by men. In “I Want a Wife” Brady writes about the demand that a wife is made to meet while the husband does nothing. She claims that the duties of a wife are unfair to the duties of husband, leading to inequality between the roles of wife and husband. Brady feels bushed by differences in the household chore and the fact that the roles performed by wife go unobserved. For instance, Brady says, "I want a wife who will have the house clean, keep my clothes clean, ironed, mended, replaced when need be, and who will see to it that my personal things are kept in their proper place so that I can find what I need the minute I need it.” (Glenn 13). The statement indicates how women were treated in the early 1960s. Women were supposed to get married and serve their husbands. Their work was to perform household

To begin with, marriage is a celebration of love, instead of an obligation. The world has transformed into a more open-minded. In bygone days,

In an essay by Judy Brady titled “I Want a Wife”, Brady discusses the typical gender dynamics of her time period (the 1970s) and challenges them. She essentially says that women are treated like they are inferior to men and so she says that she wishes or wants someone to fulfill her duties for her just like she does for her husband. This essay shows the struggle to gain equality in this time period and also represents the thoughts that a woman in this time period might have. Not only is the meaning behind this essay significant, but the way in which Brady presents it is also significant and it amplifies and strengthens the argument. This is proven by textual evidence found in the essay itself.

Walker displays this idea by, “[…] marriage and motherhood were the only futures anyone envisioned for the young women […]” (Walker 4). This quote explains how women were expected to be a mother and wife. Society did not encourage women to do anything else, but these things. This made women settle in to the mind frame that they were only allowed to stay at home to take care of the children, and the house. Once a woman got married in the 1800s, her main focus would be on her husband and the children (once she had them). Moody explains this through, “When a woman marries she assumes two new sets of relations-those of sentiment, through which she becomes the loving, faithful companion of one man and the mother of his children, […] (Moody 153). This quote explains how women gain new experiences by being married. These sets of experiences relate to being a good wife to her husband and having children. Women are able to actually see what being a wife is actually like after they are married. Before marriage women were taught how to be a good wife and how to take care of their household as well. This quote emphasized that women were supposed to be faithful to their husband and that they should take good care of him. This shows how women’s sole purpose after getting married was to take care of their husband and kids. They were not supposed to do anything that would take too much of their

Once women began working at the beginning of the twentieth century due to the war, gender roles drastically changed within households. The world was used to women spending time on housework versus men so it was an adjustment for everyone. In all actuality, when husbands take on a greater role in the house, it will result in lower divorce rates in the long run. Studies show that although this change

When a person gets married the responsibilities that they have within a family change completely because they are now a part of a whole new family which may come with new responsibilities. When a man or woman marries into a family, they have to find their role within the family dynamic which at times means that they may have to do things that they did not used to do or do things that they do not want to do, but these are things that come with being a part of a family. In addition, many times along with being married women are fit into a gender role that forces them into the “housewife” role. Some men before being married always had their mother there to do things like cooking and cleaning for them and so when they get married they assume that their wife will continue to do these things for him. These assumptions will completely shape how a women is viewed within her own family and it will also shape how she is viewed by society. The typical wife is exemplified in the story “The Married Woman”, in which the author describes what it is like for a woman to become married. A woman who was “once gay and coquettish” got “married to a man who neglected her,” which led her to take to “orderly housekeeping” to keep herself busy and this led her to “forget her own existence” (De Beauvoir 380). By becoming married a woman is shaped into a completely different

In the past women were limited, they weren't allowed to make important decisions concerning their family. Or able to get a good education, let alone have a job that didn't include manual labor, sewing, cooking, and serving men. Judy Brady described women from a man's point of view in "I Want a Wife" saying things such as "And while I am going to school I want a wife to take care of my children"(503) and "I want a wife who will take care of my physical needs...I

When Brady classifies herself as “a wife and mother” she is automatically labeled with the responsibilities that were enforced by societal beliefs of that era (Brady 229). Women were considered inferior to men and struggled to gain equality. Husband's required too much of their wives as to their physical needs; “I want a wife to keep my house clean.” Their social needs, “When I meet people at school that I like and want to entertain, I want a wife who will have the house clean, will prepare a special meal, serve it to me and my friends, and not interrupt when I talk about things that interest me and my friends.” In addition, their sexual needs, “I want a wife who is sensitive to my sexual needs, a wife who makes love passionately and eagerly when I feel like it, a wife who makes sure that I am satisfied.” (Brady 229-230). Women did all these things everyday to please their husbands, although they received no fringe benefit in return. The cultural values that were viewed at this time emphasized the discrimination and equality that Brady desperately wants her audience to

The stereotyping of women is quite common in today 's society and throughout history. In the past, women have taken the full time job of being a mother and a housewife. The 1930s initially started the ideal image of a woman. A woman was often represented as a maid-like being who would serve to their husband and children. In Richard Alleyne’s article, “Advice for women in the 1930s: Nothing Destroys the Happiness of Married Life More than the Lazy, Slovenly Wife,” he discusses the frequent expectations of a housewife. Common assumptions included; “Don’t argue with your husband; do whatever he tells you and obey all his orders” (1) and “Nothing destroys the happiness of married life more than the lazy, slovenly wife” (1). These rules have often been published into past newspapers that were

Even though it is over a hundred years ago the same situations still occur today. Our culture has gone very far with woman's independence, but there are still many women out there who dream of getting out of the "I'm just a wife" role that haunts them.

present and one of those is the theme of love. Philia, Eros, and Agape are the three types of love present in the play and are what represent the theme of love. These three types of love, Philia, Eros, and Agape are expressed by the different characters in the play. The expression of the theme of love in the play is not just there by accident; William Shakespeare put it in this comedic and romantic play with a purpose.