It was also expected that domestic infidelity at the hands of the husband and domestic abuse should be overlooked and forgiven by the wife. The rich girl who was physically abused by her husband and discovered his infidelity fled to her parents who promptly returned her to her husband reminding her of her marriage vows. The fact that she later left to live n the Bohemian quarters of new York with a Jewish family was seen as more sacrilegious in their eyes than the fact that she had fled an unfaithful and oppressive marriage. Divorce was scandalous. Living as a single woman and as a career woman was equally so. This all came out in Barbara's story.

Barbara's reminisces also reminded me of the teacher's dream student who was offered a rare and prized opportunity to become one of the few female medical students upon graduation....

She preferred marriage seeing family life and marriage as an equally promising and fulfilling, as well as a meaningful, situation.
In short, therefore, differences between Barbara's childhood in the 50s and mine in the millennium are extremely distinct. I prefer my period to hers, although I must admit that there are some advantages to Barbara's period and childhood that we lack nowadays.

Sources

Cherlin, AJ (2009) the marriage-go-round: the state of marriage and the family in America today New York: Alfred a. Knopf

Lauer, RH & Lauer, JC (1998) Sociology: contours of society Los Angeles, Calif.: Roxbury Publishing

Roberts, S. (2007). 51% of Women Are Now Living Without Spouse. The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/16/us/16census.html?pagewanted=all