This 1955 ‘Good House Wife’s Guide’ Explains How Wives Should Treat Their Husbands
Angel Chang
Picture Presentation
It’s so fascinating to learn about how people used to live — especially when we discover that not much has really changed.
However, sometimes you come across some old traditions that you simply can’t believe people ever followed — like these odd dating rituals throughout history.
But what women in the 1950s were expected to do for their husbands? Well, those traditions have certainly flown right out the window!
In May of 1955, Housekeeping Monthly published an article entitled, “The Good Wife’s Guide,” detailing all the ways that a wife should act and how best she can be a partner to her husband and a mother to her children.
It may feel a little strange to accept these rules today, but it remains so interesting to see how society once behaved.
Scroll further to see what rules mothers and housewives once had to follow, and let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
1.) Have dinner
ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal
ready, on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that
you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs.
2.) Most men are hungry when they come
home and the prospect of a good meal (especially his favorite dish) is
part of the warm welcome needed.
3.) Prepare
yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he
arrives. Touch up your makeup, put a ribbon in your hair and be
fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.
4.) Be a little gay and a little more
interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your
duties is to provide it.
5.) Clear away
the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just
before your husband arrives. Gather up schoolbooks, toys, paper, etc.
and then run a dust cloth over the tables.
6.) Over the
cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to
unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and
order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering for his
comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.
7.) Prepare the
children. Take a few minutes to wash the children’s hands and faces (if
they are small), comb their hair and, if necessary, change their
clothes.
8.) Children are little treasures and he
would like to see them playing the part. Minimize all noise. At the time
of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Try
to encourage the children to be quiet.
9.) Be happy to see him. Free him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him. Listen to him.
10.) You may have a dozen important
things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let
him talk first — remember, his topics of conversation are more important
than yours.
11.) Make the
evening his. Never complain if he comes home late or goes out to dinner,
or other places of entertainment without you. Instead, try to
understand his world of strain and pressure and his very real need to be
at home and relax.
12.) Your goal:
Try to make sure your home is a place of peace, order and tranquility
where you husband can renew himself in body and spirit.
13.) Don’t greet him with complaints and problems.
14.) Don’t
complain if he’s late home for dinner or even if he stays out all night.
Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through that
day.
15.) Make him
comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or have him lie
down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.
16.) Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.
17.) Don’t ask
him questions about his actions or question his judgment of integrity.
Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise
his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question
him.
18.) A good wife always knows her place.