In the past few years, creators such as Nara Smith have created aesthetic appeal behind the lifestyle termed “slow living”. These creators typically are depicted in a cottage-like or family styled home, often in a kitchen, and wearing feminine clothing – sometimes even changing the pitch of their voice to be softened. The slow living trend has now offshooted into various forms of slow living, whether it be romantical, conservative, or anti-government/anti-federalist. What is true amongst all of these creators and groups however, is that they create digestible propaganda for many teen and adult followers.
Alongside the rise of slow living creators, it is apparent that there is a group of creators attempting to fit the niche but not quite adjusting to it. Housewives to blue collar workers are increasingly posting “cook with me for my husband” videos, but their videos often have less potential to achieve virality. The reason for this is because the more “aesthetic” lifestyle in fact just reflects an unattainable class difference and privilege. Most people cannot simply quit their job and be provided for by their husband and still live a romanticized lifestyle. Ultimately, these housewife creators get lumped into “struggle content”.
The polarity between the two creator groups shows us something significant, however. Slow living creators who present their lifestyle as an escape from modern life are still integrated within the system. When women who are not wealthy or married to wealthy men attempt this, they lose all integration, and their lives become unpalatable. Hence, the content made by wealthy creators serves on two fronts: to propagandize women into making choices without understanding their circumstances for the simple sake of gender role preservation, and to make money off communities who uplift these creators onto a pedestal in order to later attempt the same lifestyle. While a vast amount of slow living creators may simply be scrapbooking their lifestyle, they fail to use their platform in a way that distinguishes themself from patriarchal ideals such as the promotion of cultural rigidity surrounding women’s lifestyles.
We find ourselves again at the forefront of the cultural argument – why one or the other? One end of the political spectrum glorifies professionalism and demolishes the virtue of family formation, while the other end either claims choice but glorifies housewifery or promotes sexist hierarchy of women’s lifestyle. Unfortunately, the slow living lifestyle is not exempt from politicization, and it has been a mode of the latter. Even if the women viewing these videos truly believe that housewifery is their calling, these creators are running an unrealistic version of the “American Dream” – one that many will seek but be met with economically and societally painful experiences instead. Consequently, they may not have a way out, unlike the instagrammers who can return to their media careers.
