Lisa Selin Davis’s new book — part history, part memoir, part sociology — explores the indignities of modern womanhood.
“Housewife” is a word you don’t hear much anymore. What started as a term to describe women who work in the home as caretakers has become something much more fraught — a sexist insult, a way to contain and belittle. Housewives have been stereotyped, suburbanized, lobotomized, medicated, politicized, sexualized, idealized, sentimentalized and sensationalized — everything but supported by policies and partners that recognize the value of domestic labor, whoever performs it.
The pandemic gave the couple a chance to recalibrate. He stepped up around the house; she learned to step back, which required a closer look at what she really wanted. “I admit it was hard to get used to,” she writes. One of the book’s takeaways is the obvious but essential point that equitable domestic arrangements require periodic renegotiation.At least Davis’s husband sounds like a stand-up guy.
Davis also points to colonial America, where she says housewives formed part of an interdependent network — a collective-care model she suggests could be made to work again. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, before they were relegated to the suburbs, housewives agitated and organized. In the 1930s, some wielded collective purchasing power through the National Housewives League, formed by Black women to support Black-owned businesses and communities.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
GOP's Tommy Tuberville Praises Katie Britt for Playing Role of 'Housewife'The remark came after Britt delivered the GOP response to President Joe Biden's State of the Union on Thursday evening.
Read more »
RHOM’s Julia & Adriana Reveal the Housewife Who’s the Most Different Off-CameraHere's what Julia and Adriana from The Real Housewives of Miami rank each housewife on The Real Housewives of Miami.
Read more »
Every Real Housewife Defending Andy Cohen After Bombshell Lawsuit‘Real Housewives’ franchise stars have come to Andy Cohen’s defense following Leah McSweeney’s bombshell lawsuit
Read more »
Tommy Tuberville Says 'Housewife' Katie Britt Gave A Good State Of The Union SpeechIgor Bobic is a senior HuffPost reporter who covers Congress, the White House, and political campaigns. He can be reached at igor.bobichuffpost.com and is on Twitter igorbobic.
Read more »
Lisa Frankenstein Interview: Zelda Williams & Diablo Cody Talk Horror ComedyComingSoon.net features the latest movie trailers and news, TV updates, video game reviews, anime releases, and more.
Read more »
'Lisa Frankenstein' Review: Faux Outrageous Undead Teen Horror ComedyKathryn Newton stars in Diablo Cody's unfunny camp homage to the teen-girl-vs.-the-suburbs 1980s.
Read more »