Can you be a feminist housewife?

[wigglybeezer]

Can you be a feminist if you don't have a career but your DH does, especially if this situation has been going on for a long time (13 years in my case)?

I don't feel downtrodden by the way, merely a bit bored and lacking in choice ATM. I earn a small amount of money, so don't have to ask DH for everything but I'm wondering if my Granny (who was a hospital consultant) was a better feminist than me. I just found a photo of her and her pals at medical school where she has noted on the back that there were 18 female medical students out of 180!

wigglybeezer - I love being judged by my clients and my clients alone and not having to fit in with ludicrous institutional frameworks . You can actually add value as opposed to tick boxes...

I think I must be the only housewife on MN in existance that 1) Is happy to be called a housewife 2) doesn't want to be paid 3) can't think of anything worse than DH earning less, expecting me to work and sharing MY jobs 50:50!

being judged by clients is an external check and balance.external approbation.thats what work is.ability to command A fee/salary and sell your skills

whereas housewifery is individual act,not usually judged by anyone other than partner.and not paid a salary

Yes, if some SAHMs reading this just take from it that what they are doing isn't economically inactive, it is enabling their partners to be economically active, then that in itself is worthwhile.

Women don't recognise the value of the unpaid work they do because the patriarchy has defined it as worthless unless it's paid for. If we keep banging on about it, lots more women will recognise it as worthwhile and that alone is a good thing.

really lenin,has your i dont know stance changed then

Oh, and I have been a feminist for as long as I can remember.
I don't need or seek judgement or praise from ANYONE. If you need external approval, then you need to take a long hard look at yourself.

And many housewife may not be economically active but they are very socially active within their families and communities. And thank god they are otherwise we'd have to pay for carers and volunteers and school helpers etc etc etc.

i agree housewife can makes valuable contribution to her individual family.hence the specifics of payment etc is a private individual act between partners.by all means discuss with your partner.but no dont expect state payment for being economically inactive.

But they're not economically inactive.

Our economy is built on their unpaid labour.

Slaves would have been been defined as economically inactive as well, because they were unpaid.

But capitalism was built on their unpaid labour.

Um, I said I didn't want state payment.

And all the housewives I know make a valuable contribution to the community in general, as I've outlined above.

If you are making it possible for someone else to be "economically active" (a ridiculous term invented by men who didn't recognise the value of the unpaid work women do), then how can you be defined as economically inactive? You're crucial within that domestic unit and what you are doing is worth the money that you're enabling the other person to earn. You are economically active, as well as culturally, socially, morally etc.

My housewifery enables my DH to work silly hours in an extremely well paid job so he can pay shitloads of tax.

It also means my elderly parents don't need state care. And it means my kids school gets free reading help.

And that's just one economically inactive fluff and folder.

sm, this may come as a big surprise but I'm not that interested in how it works now and accepting that it's all right and proper, I'm interested in how it could and should be. I've given plenty of examples throughout this thread.

that seems pretty non commital

Um, it's not about whether you want to be paid or not. No one's going to offer, so you don't need to panic, you're not going to have wads of cash thrown at you, knocking you over whenever you step outside your door.

I'm pointing out that it is incorrect to describe someone who enables someone else to earn money, as economically inactive.

many of you describe v specific examples of how you maintain your own families.im not disputing that.or how sahm allows man to work without childcare commitments.these are all v individual acts.and not something the state should remunerate anyone for.its a private agreement

LOL Lenin, with your name too. What are you thinking of, appearing on here with no manifesto?

i also think state shouldn't be talking about co-habitee rights either.they need to butt out of private individual relationships.of you want legal and property protection in a relationship get a cp or get married

nah,ive had enough conkers id rather stay vaguely on topic.thanks