Peace settles on the world after World War II. Women are asked once more to hold the home front and become suburban mothers.
Years pass. Suddenly Sharon realises that something is very wrong!
She feels...
restless...
unfulfilled...
taken for granted...
bored...
Only a strong dose of second-wave feminism will help her... But society has fallen into the hands of the patriarchy! Faced with an impossible tension, Sharon becomes rebellious...and strong...resilient...and monstrous! She resolves to cope with her new double life. From now on, whatever Sharon can't handle herself, the women's movement WILL!
"...In the latter half of the twentieth century, the rural and suburban housewife lives a comfortable existence free from drudgery. She is healthy, beautiful, educated, and concerned only about her children, her husband, and her home. She has found true feminine fulfilment. But is the wife-and-mother role prescribed as the post-war feminine ideal a dangerously comfortable trap? Laying dormant in housewives around the world is the idea that they have accepted a dreary,monotonous,and hauntingly empty life..."
"We cross now to Tim Sims and his report from the streets of Wagga Wagga NSW. A warning to viewers… unsatisfied women may find this disturbing…"
Women: “There’s nothing wrong, there isn’t a problem.”
Reporter: "The look in these housewives eyes is not unlike others seen around the world. Desperate women emulate their sisters, best friends, and neighbours..."
Woman: "I must suppress these feelings and continue as a wife, a cleaner, cook, lover, and mother. But I feel as though I don’t exist (she cries in pain). I just want something more than my husband, my children and my home!”
Reporter: "After being caught in the blast of her own realisation - in times of great distress, women around the world are navigating new and old problems that have tortured them every day. The ‘problem’ is manifesting, while the housewife clearly goes insane."
"...But now only questions linger. Who is this woman if not a housewife? Is it possible for her to exist in this world? Will the women's movement grow enough to be noticed and understood? This is Tim Sim’s reporting from Baylis Street Wagga Wagga."
Somewhere in Wagga Wagga…
A woman visits her fourth doctor in desperate need of a script for the contraceptive pill...
Doctor: "I can’t help you Miss, not without your husband's consent. All you need is a cup of tea, a Bex and a good lie down."
Woman: "But I can’t have another baby! I must find myself a new identity before it's too late and I die of a tedious life! Cooking, cleaning, and waiting on my husband and children, day in and day out…"
"For a long time, I have ignored the question of my identity, who am I? As a young woman, all I thought of for my life was finishing school, finding a husband, and having children. I never saw myself any older than 21."
"In this town, women need more options. I will do everything I can to ensure they get them!"
Down the dark and dingy laneway off Morgan Street…
A woman (in disguise) slips through the back door of a small room in the Health Commission headquarters, known as ‘The Hall of Shame’.
The distressed woman slowly removes her hat and scans the room for spies. A woman is standing in the corner of the room and reaches for a book on the top shelf of the library, oblivious to her presence.
The nurse steps out from behind a desk.
"I'm here to help!"
Meanwhile, the Sydney Sun office receives a
tip-off as the Family Planning Association makes moves towards better services in Wagga.
Sun Editor: "Blair, get to Wagga now and find anything you can on the lack of doctors prescribing the pill. My sources tell me this is rife in country NSW. It seems that country women have a problem on their hands. Avoid talking to any local doctors, the Daily Advertiser, and the Health Commission. I don’t want them getting wind of this story… if they haven’t already worked it out, then that's their problem…Here, take this, it's a contact that can help, and be discreet."
Back in the offices of the Wagga Wagga Daily Advertiser, the editor questions his actions...or lack thereof.
Meanwhile, at Kooringal Mall supermarket...
"This situation is wrong and unjust. With your help, together we will produce active participation in changing the landscape of Wagga's health and welfare...The world depends on it!"
Written by Sophie Magnusson from the Museum of the Riverina,
Illustrations by Alice Peacock.