Julian Crosetto, Editor-in-Chief
The recent popularization of "tradwives," that is, traditional wives, appears as a feminine interpretation of the typically masculinized pastoralist fantasy–a dubious neocolonialist call for a return to nature. Like the pastoralist fantasy, the tradwife begs for a simpler state of being–one that begs for a historical way of life informed by traditional gender roles and values. When likening this to the pastoralist fantasy, white supremacy and colonialism are inherently implicated. For context, the pastoralist fantasy refers to the "carnal" desire to return to nature, the homesteader's dream, to buy land and live off it as a self-sustaining unit. It is a result of the colonization of the United States, and while–as it is commonly discussed–pastoralism is characterized through the eyes of the patriarch, any pastoralist homestead requires a feminine presence: a tradwife.
Continuing with this model of a masculine and feminine presence, we must consider how gender-diverse populations fit into the pastoralist tradwife model. The following is a specific portrayal of the "twinkification" of the tradwife, or as I will be referring to it, the housetwink. Much like the tradwife, the housetwink is a call for a "traditional" state of being wherein the housetwink takes on the role of the tradwife. The term is of particular interest given the contradiction between the traditional values that define tradwives and the definitive homosexuality of the housetwink. The existence of the housetwink requires a separation between the mechanical household duties of a tradwife and her commitment to traditional gender roles. The following paradoxes then arise: if traditional gender roles are what define a tradwife, then how can a housetwink exist if it deviates from these roles?
The first solution to this paradox manifests as a level of satire associated with the housetwink. The housetwink is a homosexual parody of the tradwife–a comedic performance of traditional femininity under patriarchy. The housetwink knows his existence is paradoxical. The twink is envious of the tradwife. He admires her simplicity, her grace. He knows, however, that homosexuality is inherently contrary to traditional gender roles–the housetwink will be hard-pressed to find a gay man to be his pastoralist patriarch. He remains responsible for the household tasks but lacks the traditional matriarchal significance of the tradwife. Thus, he embodies parody to cope with his impossible existence. To name the housetwinks existence as parody, however, is not to degrade it. One could even argue that to be a housetwink is a form of drag–a dramatized performance of gender expertly tailored to critique traditional gender roles.
He is simultaneously, however, an honest call for a traditional life. To understand the housetwink's paradoxical existence, we must also understand his motives: why does the housetwink want to be a tradwife? Is the transformation to housetwink a radical rejection of capitalism, or is it forfeit to capitalism and patriarchy in a move of self-preservation?
Capitalism argues that individuals must optimize their lifestyle to increase their monetary output. While the move toward housetwink-dom may be a call toward traditional values, it is also a rejection of increasing monetary output–the housetwink has no income. He is supported entirely by his suitor. The contrary argument, however, exists wherein being a housewife is a component of capitalism. After all, it is the nuclear family model that fuels and perpetuates modern-day capitalism. At this point, the inherent dissonance between the housetwink's homosexuality and traditional values once again becomes relevant. While his traditional participation in the nuclear family model places him in line with capitalist systems, his queerness creates a level of separation from tradition and even pushes his existence toward something radical.
The inherent contradiction of queerness with traditional gender roles dictates that finding a husband to fulfill the tradwife fantasy is incredibly unlikely. Queer family structure is one built on kinship over an assimilationist nuclear-family unit. When the housetwink performs the domestic tasks for his household unit, then he is but a quintessential member of his micro-community. As his community and family grow and he builds a kinship network, his service to his community increases correspondingly. The housetwink has thus been established as much more than a futile attempt at heterosexual assimilation. While the origins of the housetwink may lie within a sense of envy for the tradwife, he is a critique and an improvement on the tradwife, a paragon of community care and mutual aid manifested as a drag performance.