MovieChat Forums > Father of the Bride (1950) Discussion > What Did Kay Do?

What Did Kay Do?

posted 14 years ago by KatrinaW
3 replies | jump to latest

I never got any sense of her, other than just 'waiting to get married'. Was she a student? She didn't seem to work. She seemed to be college-age. Did upper middle class girls of that era just sit around at home, waiting until they got married?

[–] PillowRock 14 years ago

Did upper middle class girls of that era just sit around at home, waiting until they got married?

Most either did that or else went to college to find a husband there (something that was referred to as going to college to get your M.R.S. degree).

Women who planned on having a career (outside the home) that lasted much beyond their wedding day were the exceptions back then.

Unless the family was poor enough that they wouldn't otherwise have enough to eat, married women were expected not to work outside the home. Many considered the mere fact of a wife having a job (with the possible exception of a childless first year or two when they were still saving for their first "starter house") to be a sign that the husband was a failure.

(That was another reason why early widowhood was often such a hardship. The woman typical had little or no work history, and usually no job at all since her engagement or wedding. That makes it hard to find a job that pays a decent salary, even more so given the extreme gender discrimination about such things at the time.)

[–] LaMelodyVita 13 years ago

I think they briefly mentioned Kay being in college in the sequal "Father's Little Dividend".

[–] nycruise-1 12 years ago

Well - the answer lies in observing what her parents - and Buckley's parents - were like.

Her father Stanley/Spencer was obviously a hard-working lawyer with lots of clients (who HAD to be invited the wedding).

Meanwhile, Ellie/Joan just sort of lived in the house, telling the black maid what to do and watching over the two sons while attending "Garden Club" meetings (the members of which all HAVE to be invited, too, according to Ellie/Joan). Oh - the mother does also help her daughter plan the wedding - while keeping Father dear in check when it comes to economizing (so I guess there's your REAL answer: women of that era were expected to SPEND MONEY).

Same with Buckley's parents: Mr. Buckley is obviously a bread-winner, but Mrs. Buckley is merely his pretty trophy wife (but with a white butler instead of a black maid - so you KNOW they have more money than Kaye's family!).

"Don't call me 'honey', mac."
"Don't call me 'mac'... HONEY!"