Wives of the clergy. A Sociological Analysis of Wives of Ministers of Religion in Four Denominations

Abstract

... for the phrase 'clergyman’s wife' has connotations which the phrase 'solicitor’s wife' or 'bank clerk's wife’ does not. The content of the meaning it conveys, is a stereotype picture of what the clergyman’s wife is like, and how her life is organised. The 'typical parson's wife’ is seen as someone who, on the one hand, opens bazaars and dispenses charity to the poor of the parish; and, on the other hand, as someone who visits the sick and bereaved and runs the Sunday School.

The two elements in the stereotype are, in this study, characterised as the Lady of the Manor and the Unpaid Curate, and their origins are traced historically, as well as their contemporary relevance being examined through empirical study. ... But the interesting thing about the 'clergyman’s wife' is that it is a stereotype attributed in a sense vicariously; that is, a set of statements about a 'typical' person, attributed by virtue of someone else’s occupation. The clear implication is that, by marrying a clergyman, one automatically adopts a particular way of life and style of life, in a much more clearly defined sense than does a person who marries into almost any other occupational group.