Edith Bunker: Loving Housewife Or Bad Influence to Women?!?

[Brian Damage]

Personally, I think Edith was just an old school housewife, who loved her husband and wanted to make him happy anyway she knew how. However I heard others who felt that Edith was a bad influence on women because she was such a foil to Archie. What do you think?

[Retro4Life]

Well those people are wrong.

Edith was a housewife in the 50's to the 70's, a time when the VAST majority of housewives in America deferred to their husbands, largely because most of them didn't work and were financially dependent upon them, and also because it was the cultural norm.

However, Edith remained admirable. She was a loving, selfless, caring mother to Gloria and a devoted housewife to Archie, who could never have made it without Edith. These qualities ALONE would have made her a good influence.

As the show went on, Edith began asserting herself more and more, eventually going to work at the Sunshine Home and helping Archie at his newly purchased bar. She began to stand up to Archie, Mike and Gloria more and more and she became a force to be reckoned with within the family.

Edith was active within her church and unlike so many others, she lived her religion in her daily life. She was kind and honest and compassionate, offering help to those in need whenever she could. She took in her niece without thinking twice. She was open minded about just about everything; she accepted Mike from the beginning, she befriended Beverly LaSalle and Louise Jefferson. She didn't care about a person's exterior, just what they were on the inside.

If that isn't a good influence on women, I'm a purple hippopotamus.

[Brian Damage]

Originally Posted by Retro4Life

Well those people are wrong.

Edith was a housewife in the 50's to the 70's, a time when the VAST majority of housewives in America deferred to their husbands, largely because most of them didn't work and were financially dependent upon them, and also because it was the cultural norm.

However, Edith remained admirable. She was a loving, selfless, caring mother to Gloria and a devoted housewife to Archie, who could never have made it without Edith. These qualities ALONE would have made her a good influence.

As the show went on, Edith began asserting herself more and more, eventually going to work at the Sunshine Home and helping Archie at his newly purchased bar. She began to stand up to Archie, Mike and Gloria more and more and she became a force to be reckoned with within the family.

Edith was active within her church and unlike so many others, she lived her religion in her daily life. She was kind and honest and compassionate, offering help to those in need whenever she could. She took in her niece without thinking twice. She was open minded about just about everything; she accepted Mike from the beginning, she befriended Beverly LaSalle and Louise Jefferson. She didn't care about a person's exterior, just what they were on the inside.

If that isn't a good influence on women, I'm a purple hippopotamus.

Well said!

[Marvo301]

Originally Posted by Retro4Life

Well those people are wrong.

Edith was a housewife in the 50's to the 70's, a time when the VAST majority of housewives in America deferred to their husbands, largely because most of them didn't work and were financially dependent upon them, and also because it was the cultural norm.

However, Edith remained admirable. She was a loving, selfless, caring mother to Gloria and a devoted housewife to Archie, who could never have made it without Edith. These qualities ALONE would have made her a good influence.

As the show went on, Edith began asserting herself more and more, eventually going to work at the Sunshine Home and helping Archie at his newly purchased bar. She began to stand up to Archie, Mike and Gloria more and more and she became a force to be reckoned with within the family.

Edith was active within her church and unlike so many others, she lived her religion in her daily life. She was kind and honest and compassionate, offering help to those in need whenever she could. She took in her niece without thinking twice. She was open minded about just about everything; she accepted Mike from the beginning, she befriended Beverly LaSalle and Louise Jefferson. She didn't care about a person's exterior, just what they were on the inside.

If that isn't a good influence on women, I'm a purple hippopotamus.

Agreed!