The Stepford Wives Themes

The Stepford Wives highlights the stifling nature of sexist, male-dominated societies. The novel dramatizes the experience of living in such restrictive patriarchal systems by placing Joanna Eberhart—a strong-willed feminist—in the insular community of Stepford, where men replace their wives with robots designed to look pretty and serve their domestic (and presumably sexual) needs. The idea is that what these men really care about when it comes to marriage has nothing to do with who…

In many ways, The Stepford Wives is about a community unwilling to embrace change. The novel takes place in the 1960s or the early 1970s—a period that was important in the struggle for gender equality, as organizations like the Women’s Liberation Movement challenged sexist cultural norms. When she first moves to Stepford, Joanna proudly talks about her involvement in the Women’s Liberation Movement, clearly already sensing that her interest in feminism will stand out in…

The Stepford Wives examines the resistance that American society in the mid-20th century showed toward female ambition. Joanna is a semi-professional photographer, and though she certainly isn’t famous or celebrated for her work, she has had some success selling her pictures to well-known magazines. And yet, it’s very clear that her artistic career has been placed on the backburner and that she’s not so sure about moving from New York City to Stepford—she worries…