Not from Scratch: Exploring the Tradwife through an Adaptation of Still Stands the House

Abstract

This article analyzes the creative process behind a recent adaptation of Gwen Pharis Ringwood’s Still Stands the House (1938), which revisited the classic Canadian play to explore the contemporary social media phenomenon of the tradwife. It argues that Ringwood, in her focus on the isolation of domestic life and the tension between tradition and progress, provides a productive lens through which to examine the tradwife: a woman who, on the surface, purports to be celebrating traditional gender roles. The article features a conversation between the playwright and student dramaturges, using excerpts from the adapted script and Instagram screenshots to reflect on the tradwife’s appeal and on the use of social media as a dramaturgical tool. Though separated by nearly 100 years, when examined together, the source text and its adaptation foreground parallels between women’s experiences in past and present and emphasize the importance of intergenerational feminist exchange and solidarity.