The Magazine Women Believed in: "Marriage Advice" 1950-1955

Abstract

In the United States society, the 1950s is seen as a time of great conservatism where both men and women were placed into specific gender roles that dictated much of how they lived their lives. One institution that verified these gender roles and stereotypes to be true was women's magazines. These magazines contained sections such as fashion segments, helpful cooking guidelines, advertisements, and advice columns that seemed to target middle class, white, suburban married housewives. One advice column that seemed to particularly focus on the idea of a happy housewife and married life was the column Making Marriage Work, which appeared in the magazine Ladies Home Journal during this 1950s time period. The author of this column, Clifford R. Adams, idealized the 1950s perfect housewife existence and through his advice he encouraged women to strive for this lifestyle, while there were other sources demonstrating that this perceived notion of the perfect housewife did not exist during the 1950s time period.