English 111

Today’s view of reality is so twisted it’s disturbing. Television and advertising glamorizes a ton of different things in today’s society which couldn’t be farther from the truth. Take the “reality” show, “The Real Housewives”, for example. There’s several different locations; Orange County, CA, Beverly Hills, New York, Miami, etc. Places where if you can afford to live there, money is usually no object. Those women are considered celebrities so the fact that people think that is how housewives live is beyond me. They are always dolled up and going to lunch or fancy dinners, or talking about who will be hosting the next dinner party. Usually anything other than what goes on in “real” life. For women to accept the role of only being housewives, in this day, would be like taking a step back in time.
In reality, there is nothing less glamorous than being a stay at home mom. This picture basically says it all. Having had been a stay at home mom for a very small period of time, I am speaking from personal experience. Looking at this “OK Cupid” ad, I am all too familiar with the look on her face. She’s exhausted, it looks as though she’s had a rough day with her hair being a mess and the fact that she’s barefoot wearing a t-shirt with a pretty pleated skirt. It seems to me as though she’s trying to get the house cleaned before hubby gets home and still try looking as if she’s done nothing all day. After doing that over and over and over, day after day, it eventually wears on you. Staying at home isn’t for everyone.
A woman’s work is never done; whether or not you’re a stay at home mom or a working mom. It is a twenty-four hour a day job. It is a non-stop cycle of cooking, cleaning, lunch making, errand running, picture taking, memory making way of life. In a strange way, I feel as though some women have taken a step back in time. Just like in the 50’s when it was the mans job to go to work and the womans job to stay home and cook and clean, as well as still look doll faced when the man gets home, a lot of woman have reassumed the role of June Cleaver. Now, I’m not saying that men never do these things, because there are stay at home dads and a lot of single dads in this world, but you don’t see ads for guys like that. Those gems are few and far between as it is.
The content in this ad, the old model car and long pleated skirt, and old style furniture relates to the era when being a stay at home mom is what women did. It is telling women today that old school is the way to