Worth of a wife
Mother’s day is coming up, and Paul Harvey is quoting the usual ‘estimate’ of what a wife would be worth, if paid for the actual work she does. Including chauffeur, day care teacher, etc.
"The value of something is what you pay for it." (anonymous, I think.) When you go to an auction, and ask your buddy on the way out, "Is this worth what I paid?" You will either get an estimate of market value for similar stuff, a wisecrack, or essentially, "What is paid is what it is worth to you."
Hypothesis: Any man can get through life without a wife. My argument: You would see wives bought for sons, a man would have to make no promises to get married, and divorce would be seen as a death sentence. Some widowers have followed their wives to the grave, but that is pretty rare. In the usual course of things, a man with a wife does happen.
So what is a wife ‘worth’, in dollars? I feel this is a trick question. For a stay-at-home wife, the answer is anything that is not spent solely for the husband. Her clothes, usually the house, health care for her and any kids, any food, luxury, taxes, school expenses for her or the kids. Plus any expenses Dad incurs that he would not have had, if not married.
And that is it. That is why divorce settlements usually come to similar conclusions on the breakup of a marriage.
The wife that works complicates the salary angle. Her ‘wages’ for the marriage are all the costs that he shells out that he would not have had if not married. If her wages contribute more than his expense, she can consider herself a non-cost item.
So, why does a guy want a girl? That is the way we are made, to seek out and attach ourselves to each other, and to produce kids.
Should we celebrate Mother’s day, or is this a cynical excuse for subjugating women? Actually, the only subjugation is society defining such a role. The individual man or woman that choose to enter marriage, to bind themselves into a family, take on responsibility for the well-being and care for each other. Each gains tremendously. Married men tend to live longer than single men, make better senior military officers, better managers and supervisors. Have more kids, on average. Men that live their marriage tend to be more content than single men or men that don’t spend a certain base amount of time with their family. Remember, there is the physical aspect of shared breaths that cause our bodies to adjust to friends and family, a very physical aspect of bonding. And renewing and maintaining bonds. A teenager who is required to spend several hours each week in the same room or vehicle, with minimum A/C or fan, with parents and brothers and sisters, will remain much better connected to the family. The connected teenager will have a much more stable basis for their adjustment to changing hormone levels. Reflect on how quickly an individual, separated by choice or chance from the closeness (shared breaths) of family or loved ones, will seek the close (?!) company of another.
So celebrate Mother’s day, and treasure Mom. Not for the financial illusion that Paul Harvey cites to set a ‘value’ on Mom’s ’services’, but for her life accomplishments and for her role in growing the coming generations.
After all, it *is* about making babies.
Powered by Qumana