Mathews 1

Kim Mathews

ENG 4903

Kory

Thursday, April 7, 2016

An Old Book with a Few New Tricks

I grew up reading older novels. As a child, I frequented the local library most

every day, and very soon I realized that most of their novels where what many

people would consider dated. However, this did not impede my love of reading;

from Little House on the Prairie to Nancy Drew, my earliest years were filled with

novels that had that old book smell many literary enthusiasts wish they could bottle.

However, now that I am older, I have to wonder: what exactly do these older novels

have to offer us in our current society aside from the pleasure of reading? What

exactly did they accomplish during their time? The novel Introducing Patti Lewis,

Home Economist is a wonderful text to look at to analyze just such a question. This

book fascinated me from the moment I picked it up, both for my love of older novels

as well as my passion for women’s rights, both factors present in this 1950s

women’s career novel. While some may claim that this novel is not overly feminist in

a rebellious manner that would allow it to stand apart 50 years later, the subtle

facets that make this novel truly feminist hold a wealth of analytical opportunities

for modern readers looking to broaden their horizons on how far our fight for

gender equality has come. Introducing Patti Lewis, Home Economist is a foundational

piece for women’s rights; this novel works to subtly set the stage for a progressive
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feminist novel during the 50s while simultaneously showing modern readers what

can still be gained from a well-worn book.

In order to fully appreciate this novel, an understanding of the culture and

gender expectations of the 50s needs to be addressed. The 50s were, and still are

seen by some, as the golden era of America when it was a simpler time dominated

by a simple family dynamic that benefited all. However, this is far from the truth.

There were, for the most part, two distinct gender roles: the male breadwinner, and

the domestic housewife. While this division was disrupted momentarily during

WWII, post-war media such as magazines helped re-reinforce the traditional

homemaker image, pushing women out of the wartime workforce and back into

their ideal role of simple homemaker. Betty Friedan,

who conducted a study in the 60s regarding content in

magazines targeted to women, found that the basis for

this ideal role shown in the media “held that women

could find fulfillment only in sexual passivity, male

domination, and nurturing maternal love. It denied

women a career or any commitment outside of the

home and narrowed woman’s world down to the home,

cut her role back to housewife” (Friedan qtd. in Holt 3).

This is plainly evidenced not only through analytical

study, but is also easily visible by merely looking at an

original ad from the 50s pictured at right. The wife is

lowered in a subservient pose with breakfast while her husband overlooks her
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haughtily with the caption, “Show her it’s a man’s world” (Business Insider).

Another study during that era, titled A Woman’s Place: An Analysis of Roles Portrayed

by Women in Print Advertising, found similarly distressing results; they found that

90% of women in women’s magazines were featured in nonworking roles within the

home, which references the unpaid work of cleaning and raising children.

Additionally, it was seen in many advertisements that women do not make

important financial decisions but

mainly are reduced to grocery

shopping or home purchases, with

these excursions being some of their

only chances to get out of the house.

Again, we see this in the ad pictured

to the right. For big ticket items such

as appliances, a woman can express

her thoughts on what she would like

but it was entirely subject to the

husband to go and purchase it, to the

point where ads state that if you cry,

he’ll buy it for you (Business Insider). Lastly, it was discovered that women were

mainly placed in advertisements as sexual objects worthy only of what their beauty

warranted. Cosmetics and beauty supplies were targeted as a way to prevent your

husband from leaving you for a wife that would be able to pleasure him (Holt, 3-4).
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In many ways, readers may be dismayed at how Introducing Patti Lewis,

Home Economist conforms to this atmosphere set firmly in stone during the 50s.

While the protagonist, a young woman named Patti Lewis, is indeed educated, it is

only in fields that would serve her as an extension of a housewife’s duties. She has

taken courses on food chemistry, economics, home management, hygiene, and child

development (Wells 14). Additionally, it is seen many times that she aligns heavily

with the beliefs of the importance of personal beauty being tied in with a woman’s

worth. For example, very early in book Patti comments on the importance of looking

as attractive as possible for her job, with the statement, “Look pretty, please!” (18).

As another example, midway through the book Patti takes it upon herself to help a

“fat” girl with dieting tips while commenting on how many other “fatties” came to

her for advice as a result (111). While these examples may seem merely petty or

“feminine”, they still display the undertones set for women in the 50s of the

importance of beauty. Additionally, we see the stereotypical romance between Patti

and her boss, Jim. It begs the question, why is it that a novel about a woman with a

fulfilling career was not seen as enough to sell on its own? This romance also

reinforces that, despite the fulfillment of a successful career, marriage and

motherhood is still the ultimate aim for a woman. Jim even states at the end of the

novel, “We’ll have dozens of children. A girl with your training is going to make a

wonderful mother” (176). Her training is reduced down to its purposes within the

home, and there is the assumption, rather than the discussion, of having children.

However, despite these downfalls that peg this as a 50s artifact, modern readers can
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still see the many ways in which this novel works to help reinforce the then

emerging sense of feminine modernism.

To begin, there is the simple fact that Patti Lewis is a college graduate. It can

be said that the courses she took are indeed merely an educated extension of

housewifely duties; however, she still successfully attended college (Wells 14),

which is a feat of feminine advancement in and of itself. She accomplished this

during an era where only 14.1% of women ages 14-24 graduated high school and

only 523,000 were enrolled in college (Bishop 4), compared to the staggering

144.13 million-person population of the United States (US Population by Year).

Additionally, Patti has her own career, and a successful one at that. We see this in

the conversation she has with her boss, who tells the impatient Patti that she is

indeed looking at a promotion at some point in her career due to her versatility and

the fact that she is “all-around enough”(Wells 28). On top of that, it is also noted that

Patti’s boss is a woman, a woman who holds the title of executive, no less (22). Both

of these facts speak volumes to the underlying message of this novel, that women

can not only be successful in the work force but that they can also lead in the

workforce. This is quite an accomplishment, particularly in an era where women are

so incredibly underrepresented in college due to the belief that marriage and a

family is the one and only pinnacle of feminine existence.

Another modern aspect concerning this book that readers may notice is

Patti’s personal view on women in the workforce. We gather some information

subtly, due to the fact that she graduated from a four-year university, is living on her

own, is unmarried, and has a successful career: all of these facts speak positively to
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her thoughts on an educated, feminine workforce. However she does provide a

definitive statement to refute male naysayers, stating, “What right, Patti thought,

had either Carl or the heckler to take such a dim view of this feminine profession,

and of feminine talents in general? Just because Carl was a history major? ‘A girl’s

place is in the kitchen,’ Carol had said loftily, looking down his nose at her during the

recent Christmas holidays. Patti had resented his attitude enough to stop seeing that

cold fish” (19). Not only was Patti simply offended by Carl’s words, but it had been

enough of a threat to feminine progress and Patti’s sense of self that she had

stopped seeing him altogether. Additionally, readers also see how in her inner

monologue, Patti challenges the men’s right to hold a dim view of working women

and their talents. This is easily translatable as challenging the men’s self of

entitlement in comparison to women, which is also a rather modern view for the

50s. As the previously discussed cultural information informed us, men were the

head of the household in the 50s who made the important decisions: not the women.

This was a highly prevalent view of the time, and for Patti to question it shows a

substantial amount of radical freethinking against deeply ingrained norms of the

time. To put it in perspective, Patti’s thoughts would be comparable to our current

fight for LGBTQA equality, a fight against established norms of ‘one man, one

woman’ that has been prevalent in our society since its founding, held stubbornly

and ignorantly in place by those unwilling to change as time does.

Despite the many ways in which Introducing Patti Lewis, Home Economist

firmly plants itself in the 1950s, it still offers much for modern readers to explore.

Looking at this novel from the perspective of today’s feminists, it is easy to see the
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challenges women went through to arrive at (comparably) easily attainable goals for

women today, such as college and the freedom to decide when and if we marry. This

novel is one I feel women everywhere should read, not just for its enjoyable

language and free flowing nostalgia, but for the opportunity it allows us to examine

where our fight started, where it has come, and where we can possibly lead it.
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Works Cited

Bishop, John H. "The Explosion of Female College Attendance." CAHRS Working

Paper Series (1990): 1-37. Web.

<http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1389&c

ontext=cahrswp>.

Holt, Jennifer. "The Ideal Woman." 1-5. California State Univerisity. Web.

Jacobs, Harrison. "26 Sexist Ads Of The 'Mad Men' Era That Companies Wish We'd

Forget." Business Insider. 8 May 2014. Web.

<http://www.businessinsider.com/26-sexist-ads-of-the-mad-men-era-2014-

5>.

"US Population by Year." Multpl. Multpl. Web. <http://www.multpl.com/united-

states-population/table>.

Wells, Helen. Introducing Patti Lewis, Home Economist. New York: Messner, 1956.

Print.