Housework--often trivialized or simply overlooked in public discourse--contributes in a complex and essential
way to the form that families and societies assume. In this innovative study, Marjorie L. DeVault explores the
implications of "feeding the family" from the perspective of those who do that work. Along the way, DeVault
offers a new vocabulary for discussing nurturance as a basis of group life and sociability.
Drawing from interviews conducted in 1982-83 in a diverse group of American households, DeVault reveals the
effort and skill behind the "invisible" work of shopping, cooking, and serving meals. She then shows
how this work can become oppressive for women, drawing them into social relations that construct and maintain their
subordinate position in household life.