Judy Brady's Why I Want a Wife

The Feminist Movement

In the late 1960's, and early 1970's, the second wave of the Feminist Movement hit the United States of America. During this time, women were fighting for an equality of rights in every aspect: political, social, and economical. One woman, Judy Brady, spoke out against the stereotypes of modern society when she wrote her piece entitled, "I Want a Wife". This literary work breaks down the duties of a wife and mother while identifying many stereotypes women fall victim to in society then, and even now. Through her use of repetition and irony, Brady makes her mark on this part of our history, and definitely gets her point across.

The Feminist Movement "promote[s] gender equality and oppose[s] the perpetuation of gender discrimination in economic, political, legal, and social structures". At the time Judy Brady wrote her essay, women were fighting for the right to become an equal in the eyes of society, and winning the battle in more ways than one. Women had earned the right to vote, and finally the right to an abortion. While still lesser than men in several aspects, women were covering new ground. Brady's essay brings light to how women are perceived, speaking as a woman, looking through the eyes of a man.

"I want a wife who will work and send me to school" (Brief Bedford Reader, 288). Right here, Brady says that she wants a wife who will work and send her to school so that she would not have to work as hard while working to become more economically independent. While it is worthy of respect to have a man want to become more economically independent, it is just as worthy of disrespect that he would expect the woman to work to support the family by herself during the time it takes to do this. Irony in this situation is that while he wants to better his family, said husband wants to burden it.