Judy Brady's Case

In Judy Brady's I Want a Wife, published in the Spring 1972 issue of Ms. magazine, the author talks about how she too wants a wife while also indirectly telling the readers what is expected of a wife in 1972, some of the demands she makes are on the verge of ridiculous. The author begins her essay with how a friend of her's was recently divorced and wanted a new wife which led her to think how she too would like a wife. She follows with how she would like a wife because she would like to go back to school in order to become "economically independent" (line 6). Throughout the rest of the piece she describes her ideal wife and how the wife would fulfill all of her desires. She also creates a strong case of logos in her argument by logically proving how men expect too much from their wives ,in paragraph 4 she lists what she wants from her wife, "I want a wife who will take care of my physical needs. I want a wife who will keep my house clean. A wife who will pick up after my children, a wife who will pick up after me. I want a wife who will 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." She continues on and writes about how her wife would need to do many more stereotypical housewife jobs such as cook, clean and care for the rest of the family. She also sets a double standard for her wife when she states that cannot complain but must listen to her complaints. Along with the logos she also uses pathos when she emotionally describes what men expect from women, and how women should not live their lives this way. The author ends up describing a wife that will do everything imaginable and not have a single flaw to her, in other words he describes a perfect wife who is nurturing and selfless but at the same time intelligent and widely knowledgeable, this type of wife can ultimately be referred to as a superhuman.