Tradwives Are a Figment of Conservative Imagination
Social media tradwivery, glorified by Christian fundamentalists, is not traditional at all
Tradwives don't really exist. They are a fantasy. Despite the social media success of women like Mormon "tradwife" Hannah Neeleman, aka Ballerina Farm, the tradwife lifestyle portrayed there is not traditional.
My mother was a traditional housewife who raised four kids. But like most traditional housewives, her life was nothing like Neeleman's.
It wasn't a bad life but ordinary, not Instagram-able or romantic. Despite making most of our food from scratch, her mundane daily routine would never have amassed millions of followers on social media.
The beautiful fantasy of a life that Neeleman portrays on social media seems free and liberating when you're stuck in an unfulfilling nine-to-five job. But such a life sadly isn't in the cards for most of her 9 million followers.
Sure, they may fantasize about a more natural existence on the prairie, but it won't happen for them, and they know it. Because it's expensive and neither traditional nor realistic.
