The Vacuum
The emergence of home appliances as gifts, directly marketed to women, has its roots in the 1920’s with the rise of the middle class. Advertisements from that era were specifically designed to demonstrate that these new items saved time for homemakers so they could enjoy more leisure time. During the 30’s and 40’s, appliances lost their allure as luxury items. Yet, the resurgence of the nuclear family in the 50’s brought back the appliance as an appropriate gift for women. However, the underlying meaning of the gift had changed. Appliance gifts were symbolic tokens of the rigid gender roles of the era, where women were expected to stay in the home.
As we grew out of the uptightness of the 50’s, the vacuum came into its own as the trite, comedic gift given by an oblivious husband. So beware of giving a “vacuum” gift (unless specifically requested…). The message sent by giving an appliance is one of insensitivity.
A gift like a vacuum or oven, assumes that the recipient enjoys picking up after you, being your servant, etc, and that you expect him or her to stay in the home while you are out doing other things. For all gift giving purposes, it looks like “the vacuum” should only be a gift given on TV shows.
Adapted from: The Modern Christmas in America: A Cultural History of Gift Giving by William B. Waits.
