This week for class we read Chapter 5: Understanding the Rhetorical Situation in our text. As I went through the reading, the whole “exigence” concept and how rhetorical discourse can improve or change political, social, or emotional problems seemed to take the main focus of the chapter. In one part of the discussion, the text implemented Judy Brady’s essay entitled, “I Want a Wife” (page 106 in the older-version of the text). Needless to say, this essay really struck me on both a political and emotional standpoint, as well as a rhetorical standpoint. Although many people might grasp the concept of the societal and domestic roles of females, Brady explicitly states all of the assumptions and expectations that being a wife entails. Therefore, this essay is effectively and rhetorically strong.
After my first reading of the essay, my cognitions were that of both realization and agreement. Every statement that Brady makes about what a wife should and should not do seemed to agree with my stereotyped expectations of what the “perfect wife” is. The tone of this essay is that of reality and sarcasm. Brady conveys the reality of the situation by explicitly stating the expectations of wives. Her use of sarcasm precedes and indicates her opinions against these roles and her support for their changes. Further, on a more personal level from a daughter’s standpoint, the wife that Brady describes seems similar to that of my mom. I always knew she was a super-mom, but man, did she really fit these descriptions! Although this may be flattering to mothers (and wives) who really try to be the best, Brady emphasizes a rhetorical exigence that underlies the message of this essay. As stated in the text, a rhetorical exigence is a problem. This problem can be political, social, emotional, etc., as long as it can be discussed and resolved through discourse. Brady’s essay is her way of using discourse aimed at the exigence of female-stereotyped roles and expectations. Even by reading the essay and realizing that nearly every sentence is a husband’s view of a perfect wife, you can tell that something needs to be changed. Societal roles are often overlooked, and I think that Brady’s purpose towards the audience was to get them to explicitly realize the problem at hand, and to start making independent action towards improvement. At least I can say that her aim worked for me, allowing me to realize just how hard my mom works to keep our family together!
Further discussion: This essay was written in the 1970s. Do you think any change has occurred in these expectations? Or are they basically the same as they were back then?
Image courtesy of http://carlislehistory.dickinson.edu/wp-content/uploads/hswf.gif
I think your analysis of the essay was exactly right, and I also liked how she used sarcasm to express her point. I think more and more women are in the work force, but there still are plenty of moms who stay at home and fit that description.
ReplyDeleteI believe that ideas towards perfect wives have changed. It's more of an equal relationship where the wife is not completely dependent on the husband for everything that occurs household decision wise. That being said, I personally think it's a perk if you know how to cook because I love to eat. Like my mom always says "the best way to a man's heart is through his stomach." Good article.
ReplyDeleteThere is definitely a change of perspective of the "perfect" wife. There seems to be a change where people(men) are looking for more independent women who can do most things on their own. I also agree with John about women that can cook. It'd be nice if they could. Great analysis
ReplyDeleteInteresting entry! I too found this article to be entertaining due to Brady's use of sarcasm and humor to convey what she sees to be a problem or exigence. Since it was written, I think times have changed though. While certainly a respectable duty to be a housewife, I don't think many women today have this as their main goal in life. I really liked how you included the further discussion question!
ReplyDeleteOne of the things I find fascinating about gender relations today is the distribution of domestic work. For instance, in families where both adults work full time out of the house, the expectation typically is that household chores will be split in half. Often, these divisions may fall along traditional gender lines, but if both parties prefer these tasks, there's no problem, right?
ReplyDeleteAs it turns out, even in couples where the stated goal is to equally distribute the housework, women end up doing significantly more of the work than men. (Of course, perception often is much different than reality in these cases.)