Judy Syfers's Why I Want A Wife

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Recommended: The portrayal of women in literature

Women have been oppressed in the past, and women and women’s rights activists have published many works to empower women to show the world that women do matter. Judy Syfers was one of those authors. She masterfully employs irony and anaphora in “Why I Want A Wife” to empower women, specifically wives, so they start thinking about how important their role is in their husbands’ lives. “Why I Want A Wife” is filled with irony that shows the reader how valuable women truly are. Judy Syfers’ work places women in an inferior position to men using phrases like “classification of people,” to show their supposed insignificance within the marriage. However, she ironically explains how men are built on what women do for them. From the beginning of the …show more content…

Looking more into the phrase, the word “want” signifies that a wife is something to be desired, not something needed. It implies that wives are a luxury to have, therefore implying value. If “Why I Want A Wife” is used to empower women, then telling the reader that she is valuable will surely get that done. The repetition of the phrase emphasizes this need, or desire, to have a wife, and the emphasis is used in an ironic way to further the idea that wives are something of value. It is as if the repetition continuously, almost ad nauseum, pounds into the head of the reader that being a wife is an important job. Another word that is repeated in the text is “my,” usually following the phrase “I want a wife who.” The persona is a wife, so the word “my” seems like a complaint, like she wants to be admired herself for a change. It leaves a slight nagging feeling to the word as well. Still, the inclusion and repetition of the word “my” is intended to have the reader, most likely a woman, say the word and think about her own life. “Why I Want A Wife” is a short story that makes a woman think about her position and importance in her relationship. Syfers’ use of irony reverses her role as the wife to, in reality, show how important the wife has within the relationship. While at the same time, using anaphora to really sink in and emphasize the value of a wife. Judy Syfers’ readers will definitely feel empowered to reconsider their role in their husbands’

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