Fans of βtradwivesβ abound here. There was even a song.
What does this term mean to you?
If you like or prefer tradwives, are there differences between what you like about them and your conception of an actual typical wife from the actual past?
Whatβs your conception of a non-trad wife and do you see any benefits?
#asknostr #marriage #trad #tradwife #grownostr
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Replies (35)
Iβve known many men who had tradwives. Almost everyone of them had a mistress or multiple side chicks π£
More eggs, duh. π
βI love my wife but she doesnβt allow me to F*ck herβ was the most common answer.
My argument was maybe their wives wanted exactly that but they hadnβt had the conversation.
Then they would almost always get defensive about how their βsweet wifeβ would never do such things.
Sometimes Iβd think & even hope their wives were getting it in elsewhere.
Cause fair is fair β¦
Beauty of being deployed with men & overall treated as one. π€£πβ¨
Made this many years ago π€£πβ¨π΅βπ«π· 

I wish I could deny that. That being acknowledged, is being a single father truly worthy of its overinflated, and often underappreciated, outlook?
The double standards really made me ill.
Luckily I was smart enough to spread rumors my body held all manner of STDβs.
Mostly worked against being a target for the boys in men bodies.
Either way, Iβm stronger now & they hold no power over me anymore. π
No idea. π€·π»ββοΈ Single fathers should speak to that. Iβve never been one. Known many but none of them ever said they felt under appreciated. Hmm π€
My Spidey senses tell me this is a trap...
It's never our intention to burden women with such stigmas, but there are particular challenges that come with being a single father.
This note is purely for research. I wonβt argue with anyone in the replies to it unless explicitly invited.
I reserve the right to make βair repliesβ based on thoughts I have in response to responses.
Iβm asking because I keep running into people I like here who are into this concept and I wonder if their definitions align with mine. Conversations are meaningless without a common understanding of terms.
I guess a trad wife to me means wife that doesn't have an Only Fans account.
Is this your only criterion? I.e., all wives who can cook are tradwives?
I personally agree π you donβt have to be a gourmet chef but itβs important to be able to do basic keeping yourself alive
Is this, or by extension, a wife who is monogamous and faithful in deed as well as in mind, your only criterion?
I think itβs a spectrum. You can go from modern to traditional or anywhere in between. Iβm more of a modern wife at this point because I have a career and canβt even boil water. I also dress crazy, swear like a sailor, and smoke a lot of weed so i donβt give off super feminine vibes like the women who are closer to the trad side of the spectrum.
Itβs all kind of meaningless labels, but traditional wives to me are like 50s housewives who wear dresses everyday, are the householders, and care for the man and his kids. To me, they act/dress/present more feminine and βproperβ.
I think thereβs benefits either way, but the best would be to fall somewhere in the middle. For example, my husband nor I really care about holding a βtraditionalβ household, but would it be nice if I could cook a nice meal and get my hair done more often? Fuck yeah.
Not sure if this was just a question for the men, but I would consider myself somewhat of a tradwife.
To start, I feel this term is highly nuanced, so it can be tough to discuss. Everyone has their own set of circumstances that prevents the existence of the perfect definition of "tradwife". A few things I can mention that I believe qualify me as a tradwife are: I take my role as a mother very seriously and have not worked outside the home for the last 10+ years as we have small children at home still, I homeschool our children, I cook from scratch, I do my best to avoid processed food in the home, we have dinner as a family every night, I take my role as a wife seriously as an equal partner or help mate to my husband. I stand by my husband as he leads our family while trusting and knowing he considers my feelings and opinions as equally as God's, and his own. I do my best to maintain an (within reason) orderly home where our family is blessed to enjoy peace and joy. The maintenance of the home is mainly on me, but with the involvement of all family members on varying levels. I take care of the home because husband works outside the home. I nurture the children and encourage them to have relationships with their father and to respect him. All circumstances are unique, but these are a few of my thoughts. I absolutely love my life as a wife and mother. We've made many worldly sacrifices to live this life and I believe it's worth it. It's not for everyone though, I suppose. What are commonly agreed upon characteristics of tradwives you've heard? What are your thoughts?
Just here to say it's an interesting conversation and I'm enjoying following it!
You may not guess this about me, but I cook epicurean several times a week from scratch, and always from natural ingredients, and use real butter, etc. I also am an amazing housekeeper, very tidy and organized, and have managed teams to keep a household going. My parents were very traditional in marriage as well. I've definitely been influenced by traditional values, but
because I also value my career, and will always work out a home office, I hope to also hire people to help us with the housework. Does this make me traditional I think the triad wife trend that's going now only makes the news when it's really really extreme-like I doubt I'm gonna make my own toothpaste. I'd rather make a book or an app.
My parents are two different religions, so that canceled out religion for us. Although we did go to Bible school in summer.
I definitely value womenβs definitions and thoughts on this as well! Anyone who uses the term, is like to know what they mean by it.
I plan to respond to your questions soon π
So, itβs because Iβve never really heard anyone define it that Iβm asking this question, so I donβt think I know yet what the commonly agreed upon characteristics of tradwives are.
By some of the answers, theyβre defined very simply by one characteristic, by which even I would be considered one π
because I cook all the time and donβt have an onlyfans π
But others like you are answering more in line with my own thoughts, which are, a little simplistically:
A tradwife is a married woman who believes itβs her duty to live according to a certain conception of gender roles; to be a skilled, capable homemaker, and focus on pleasing her husband, with whom there is an obedience relationship, and raising children.
Iβm partly asking this question because Iβd like to know if itβs like I thought, and a belief in the necessity of gender roles and marital hierarchy is necessary for being a tradwife, or if a tradwife is simply defined by what she does. Because if the latter, I might be one π€ at least for now
Tradwives seem to just be homemakers.
What comes to my mind when I hear the term is Instagram and/or tiktok influencers cosplaying the 1950s. That's probably not what it means to most people, but the little that has crossed my various feeds just looks like a play-act.
In no particular order:
Handy
Thrifty
Clever
Witty
Helpful
Cute
Beautiful
Hawt
Decidedly non-delusional about her sex
Strong
Well-read
Competent
Able to function autonomously but chooses to be part of a team
love this!
meaningless labels! that pretty much sums it up!
The definition you provided fits well, except for the obedience part.. definitely a partner who recognizes neither is more important than the other, and respects and adores her equal partner. Definitely recognition of gender roles and not afraid to express her femininity in carrying them out. I see gender roles as primary focuses with overlap.
It just so happens that mens gender roles is to lead.. so rather than the wife being obedient, she allows the man to fulfill his role by leading
I donβt get the difference here between obedience and following. Can you explain?
Kinda both.
The US is subject to really horrific nostalgia programming, and it comes out like this.
Itβs only meaningful if it matters to you, ya know?
Not surprisingly, human relations are more complex than they seem when digging in. I see "obedience" as implying AUTHORITY. Husbands don't have authority over wife's in my view. Each have different gifts and inclinations and strengths that are supposed to synergize and play on each other's strengths. For me, the "trad" criteria is recognizing gender roles, of which leadership and decision making is one for men. And a woman recognizing that this is a role the man plays, also has her role in supporting, providing critical views for consideration where needed, and counsel, oftentimes follows because she doesn't wanna make the decisions and she had already been brought in the process. These roles overlap in different areas. There is also the dynamic of in the home vs outside the home, too much to expound on.
Man here making my own toothpaste π
So if she consistently doesnβt want to make decisions, what is the point of a role?
Is this simply something yβall naturally fit into or is it enforceable somehow? What happens if one day she wants to make a decision or you wish she would?
Sorry, this question does escape the scope of the original post, but I am curious. π
To me at tradwife is a wife who works within the home and takes on the traditional household and child rearing duties. Every marriage and family circumstance is different but it could include: cleaning, homeschooling. Cooking, gardening, processing fish and meat, running errands, having a side hussle for extra income that is done at home, etc