Matchar wraps things up with a set of utterly reasonable suggestions for women bent on a New Domestic lifestyle: practice moderation maintain financial independence don't believe everything you read on the Internet. If 'an increasingly visible subculture of women sees quitting work as not just a personal choice but an increasingly political act,' what is going to happen to these 30-something women if, for all their investment in family life, they wind up divorced or otherwise on their own at 40? For all the power of online communities, it's real-world social networks of friends and neighbors that have the power to sustain. The isolation of young mothers is particularly poignant, as they confess to Matchar how hungry they are for the validation social media can provide. In fact, the relative lack of community engagement is an underexplored thread here. Or, on a more dire level, refuse to vaccinate your children and you could threaten the health of all the kids in your community. Spend your days growing organic lettuce and you may not have the energy to lobby for a safer food system. Homeschool your kids, points out Matchar, and you're less likely to be out fighting for better public schools. The dark side of DIY culture is a precious isolationism, one that can privilege the individual over the collective good, to the detriment of all.

It's about forging a more just and equitable society for all its citizens, something in danger of being forgotten in the rush to shore up the bonds of home and family. The very diversity of this movement towards home and hearth, Matchar argues, is what gives it cultural weight.īecause while freedom of choice is one thing, Matchar points out, feminism is about more than just self-determination. Are they grown-up Riot Grrrls or nouveau back-to-the-landers? Conservative Christian mothers or the proprietors of Swiffer-sponsored mommy blogs? But that may be the point. In fact, her scope is so sweeping that it's hard to get a handle on who, exactly, her subjects are. Is this rush to hearth and home empowering? Or is it the same old oppression dressed up on 21st-century togs?Īccording to Matchar, the 'New Domesticity' is an octopus of a trend - a many-tentacled movement encompassing the relatively benign pastimes of crafting, cooking and lifestyle blogging as well as more radical, all-consuming practices like attachment parenting and urban homesteading.

It's an examination of the cultural implications for women and for society at large. Matchar's new book, 'Homeward Bound: Why Women Are Embracing the New Domesticity,' is her close read of the forces that she argues have conspired to nudge these women out of the workforce and into the arms of Martha Stewart.

Homeward bound by emily matchar