As the title of this episode of Sister Wives suggests, it focuses mainly on Kody Brown, the husband, and his struggles with maintaining intimate relationships with his four wives. There are also a lot of other topics interwoven throughout: Robyn, the fourth wife, reveals that she will be having a boy, there is conversation about some new family business ideas, and all the sister wives discuss the issues that Christine, the second wife, is currently having in her relationship with Kody.
Since they’ve moved to Las Vegas from Utah to escape possible prosecution for polygamy, the Browns have been living in four separate houses, one for each wife and her kids. The houses are as much as a mile apart, which means Kody is driving a lot to spend time with everyone. He’s frustrated and tired, although he really isn’t throwing a pity party about it.
Kody’s not a sympathetic character in our culture. Polygamy is still taboo in mainstream America. I’ve been reading a lot of the blogs and articles out there about Sister Wives, and I know that people tend to think he’s having his cake and eating it too, by being able to be with multiple women while they have to share him.
As someone who’s chosen a polygamous lifestyle myself, I see his flaws but I also sympathize with his plight. It’s true that he did choose his life, but so did each of the sister wives, and I believe they have that right. I also know that being a polygamous husband is hardly the paradise some imagine it might be!
Kody and each of the sister wives has a one-liner they speak during the intro to each episode, and his is “Love should be multiplied, not divided.” Personally, I think this is a little cheesy, but I get his point. The point of view most people have is that he is dividing his love, and that each wife gets less than she deserves because of this. But poly people find that love increases when it’s shared, because love is not a finite thing that can be divided like a pie. Polygamous women also have the love of their sister wives; in a functional polygamous household, there can arguably be a lot more love to go around than there might be with only two adults.
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Article comments
1 - Ladybelle Fiske
Good job, Poly! I really enjoyed reading this and agree that Robyn (perhaps because of her closeness with Meri) feels that Meri is pulling away from the Brown family in some respect. Meri is in a different stage of life. Her only child is almost grown; her relationship with Kody seems in a more casual stage than it was in Utah. She would perhaps veer off on her own if it were not so difficult to do that, one feels. COuld this be particularly because her daughter, Mariah, is unhappy with the entire arrangement?
I find Janelle's disinterest in Robyn's baby more than simply her disturbance over loss of work. It seems to me she's never really gotten fully bonded with Robyn; in fact, all of the wives with the exception of Meri seem to have their problems with Robyn... but she's a bonus to the group. She's good with the kids, wants very much to be united with the other women, and is appealing and caring. Still, her youth and beauty may be difficult for the older women.
C'est la vie! If only their religion permitted multiple husbands, things might pan out more easily.
I wish the Brown family well, and also the new TV Open Thread commentator, Polygrrl. I'll be writing about Sister Wives from time to time but am happy that Poly is taking Sunday nights.
2 - polygrrl
Thanks for the feedback, Ladybelle! I'll look forward to your future articles!
I think you're right about Janelle - she and Robyn are so different that it's not a natural fit for them to be friends, and she also seems to be irritated by her. She has always seemed way too in her head to me, and not having her career seems to be making her deal with personal relationships more, which isn't her forte. No shortage of drama this season!