Jada Pinkett Smith Has A Problem With ‘Wife’; Lots Of Women Do

Do men feel the same way about being a husband?

I didn’t think there was anything more that could be said about Jada Pinkett Smith and Will Smith’s marriage. There have been rumors over the years that they have an open marriage (and what’s wrong with that?) or they’re about to divorce (same).

But now Pinkett Smith has come right out and said something that, no matter how shocking it may be to some women will resonate with a lot of others — she never wanted to get married, she didn’t want to be a “wife” and she put her family’s needs first and promptly “forgot who Jada was.”Sound familiar?

Unconventional marriage

In an interview in the Guardian, she says:

“I knew that I was not built for conventional marriage. Even the word ‘wife’: it’s a golden cage, swallow the key. Even before I was married, I was like, ‘That’ll kill me.’ And it damn near did!”

A lot of women have a problem with being a wife. Ever since Judy Syfers’ “I Want a Wife” essay in the first issue of Ms. magazine — actually, before then — there have been lots of feels about what being a wife means. Books, fiction and nonfiction, and articles have been written about it. Our most high-profile single woman…