Bryan Forbe’s 1975 horror film The Stepford Wives, can be viewed as how post World War II females as wives did not have much to look forward to in their everyday lives. The film shows how the husbands are in control of the house and every single decision the family makes. It is portrayed in the film that the husband has the utmost power over the wife. She is only allowed to adhere to whatever her husband says.
In the article The Feminine Mystique written by Betty Friedan, it shows how a women’s only dream is to be the perfect wife and mother. Their greatest success is to bear children, live in a beautiful house, and their only fight to maintain their relationship with their husbands (Betty Friedan, pg. 18). This ties well back into the movie in the sense that Carol has this problem. Carol is caught up in this game of playing housewife. She never goes out unless it is to go grocery shopping, she never has time to relax unless it is when her kids are napping, even then she is usually catching up on cleaning. Joanna discusses how they never have time for themselves and Bobbie is surprised that they can’t do what they want. Bobbie’s husband lets her do what she wants and is not tied down with the idea of being a housewife.
Source: Paramount Pictures, 1975 Stepford Wives
(Bobbie, Johanna, and Carol all discussing what they do for fun when they are not busy around the house)
In the article The Horror Film as Social Allegory (And How it Comes Undone) Rosemary is panicked in her visit to Dr. Hill, who is a young kind physician who Rosemary believes will help her flee Guy and his horrid friends. (Christopher Sharrett, pg. 61)This identical in The Stepford Wives when Joanna goes to see a physiatrist due to Bobbie’s transformation into a housewife. In The Feminie Mystique it states that she doesn’t know anything else other than being the wife and mother that she is. She has no idea who she is as a person. All she can do is be patient and wait until her husband comes home and try to make him feel significant. (Betty Friedan, pg. 29) Several times throughout the film Walter does not seem interested when he comes home to Joanna. She always has dinner ready for him, always asked how his day was and he always just ignored her and talked about work and things that she didn’t really care about.
Source: Paramount Pictures, 1975 Stepford Wives
(Joanna visiting Dr. Fancher in the sense that she is worried about Bobbie turning into one of the housewives and essentially becoming a “robot”)
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