Saturday, June 21, 2008

What Defines 'Home Ec'?

Before you read my post, please watch this clip from Roseanne.

Now that you have watched this, think of how your economic status effects how you manage your home. Is there any luxury involved? When I use luxury in this, how much labor time is invested into the upkeep of the home. Is it literally another shift in the home, with the one free day devoted to getting all the washing/cleaning/grocery shopping? Or can it be done on a as needed basis. IS there a correlation between the amount of time that woman has to work outside the home and the amount she has to put into managing the house. Its clear that the home-ec Martha preaches is to those women who have the economic luxury of investing time and money into the trimmings of their homes. But does being less affluent mean unclean? There seems to a stereotype of people living in poverty and the outward appearance of their home. In his book 'Myth of the Welfare Queen' the author points out that the demands of trying to just keep up for one women with the grandchildren she is trying to raise and just keeping her head above water, her home suffers with unclean areas, because there is a point where the emotional and physical toll of survival means that her home may suffer. And there are others who believe that poverty is no reason for clutter or mess. Perhaps there is no one answer. But maybe for some the burdens placed upon them defines home-ec as matters of absolute survival and the rest is just not necessary.
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