Last night on the season finale of Sister Wives, Kody married his 4th wife, Robyn.
Cameras were “not invited” to the religious ceremony part of the wedding, but were present at the reception — although most of the guests and extended family members chose not to be filmed for the show. Janelle, Meri and Christine — Kody’s three other wives — gave Robyn a claddagh ring as a wedding present, which Robyn found very moving. She said, “It’s like I got into the sorority.”
But before the nuptials, there was some drama. Robyn attempted to include the other women in the wedding planning as much she could — picking flowers, cake tasting and location searching. When it came to choosing a wedding dress, Robyn and the ladies had a great time as she tried on some different options, but Robyn didn’t actually pick a dress while she was with them — she picked one later, with Kody. She’d intended for this to be a secret, but Kody bragged about it on camera, which got Christine so worked up that she had to leave the set.
Now that the show is over, and we can reflect on what we’ve learned, I think it is safe to say that there are benefits and drawbacks to being in a polygamous marriage. For these women, having a big family — lots of kids and other women to relate to and help out around the house — is really important. It’s clear that there’s a lot of love in the Brown family, and these are all consenting adults dealing with some of the same issues any married people have. That said, it’s very strange that in a time when being a religious extremist is so reviled, these people are painted as a warm, happy unit. This particular polygamous situation is fraught with tension, jealousy, feelings of betrayal, double standards and heartbreak, and it is obvious that the women have to sacrifice, share and manage expectations in a way that Kody doesn’t.
And when Robyn talks about making Kody’s eggs properly, she sounds straight out of a 1950s home ec filmstrip. Pre-equality, pre-women’s lib. Even though she says that he would do it for her and he’s worth it, what proof do we have?
