Abstract
Tradwife influencers, who promote traditional religious feminity and gender roles reminiscent of the 1950s, have skyrocketed in popularity following the pandemic. In this bachelor's thesis, I compare American feminity ideals during the Cold War and in the online tradwife space concerning sexuality, fertility, cultural association to feminine labor, and attire. Ultimately I make the case that the two have significant ideological overlap due to a shared origin of political polarization. Unlike the polarization of the Cold War, which was international and encouraged patriotism, I argue that present-day polarization is national. Rather than being brought about to combat communism overseas, the modern tradwife may be borne of the emerging political divide between Gen Z American men and women. Not only does the gender political divide match the timeframe of tradwife influencers' boom in popularity, but it would explain tradwives' lack of patriotism, distrust of government and medicine, and preference for a self-sufficient lifestyle.
