The Good Wife's Guide

Apparently, this is an article published in 'Housekeeping Monthly' in 1955. Read on.

Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready, on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have been thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they come home and the prospect of a good meal (especially his favourite dish) is part of the warm welcome needed.

Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.

Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.

Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Gather up schoolbooks, toys, paper, etc. and then run a dustcloth over the tables.

Over the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by.Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering for his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.

Prepare the children. Take a few minutes to wash the children’s hands and faces (if they are small), comb their hair and, if necessary, change their clothes. They are little treasures and he would like to see them playing the part.

Minimise all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Try to encourage the children to be quiet.

Be happy to see him. Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.

Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.

Make the evening his. Never complain if he comes home late or goes out to dinner, or other places of entertainment without you. Instead, try to understand his world of strain and pressure and his very real need to be at home and relax.

Your goal: try to make sure your home is a place of peace, order and tranquillity where your husband can renew himself in body and spirit.

Don’t greet him with complaints and problems. Don’t complain if he’s late home for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through that day.

Make him comfortable. Make him lean back in a comfortable chair or have him lie down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.

Don’t ask him questions about his actions or question his judgement or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.

A good wife always knows her place.

I just love the phrase highlighted in red. Excellent! The french translation added some more biting twist. Here's the french version re-translated.

After dinner, clear the table and do the dishes at once. If he suggests to help you, decline his offer because he would risk to feel obliged to repeat it afterwards. After a long day of labour, he doesn't need additional work. Encourage him to be engaged in his favourite pastimes and to dedicate himself to his centers of interest. Show yourself interested without giving however the impression to trespass his domain. If you have small pastimes yourself, see to it not to annoy him by talking about it because the centers of interests of women are often rather insignificant compared to men's.

On intimate relationship, be guided by your wedding obligations and in particular your obligation to obey him. If he considers that he needs to sleep at once, then be it. Be guided by his desires and never provoke or stimulate him for a sexual intercourse.

If he needs sexual intercourse, accept it with humility while keeping in mind that the pleasure of a man is more important than that of a woman. When he reaches orgasm, a small groan on your part will encourage him and will be completely sufficient to indicate to him any kind of pleasure you were able to have.

If he has extramarital affaires, be obedient and resigned, but indicate your possible lack of enthusiasm by keeping yourself silent. It is likely that your husband will fall asleep quickly.

You could then reset the alarm clock so you could wake up earlier than him. It will allow you to prepare his morning cup of tea ready when he will wake up.

Haha, this is hilarious!