The Wife Can Be the Breadwinner Too

The article "Family Roles Unraveling," May 30, made two statements that are misleading. It states that "the proportion of households headed by women has increased." Is this meant to imply that women only head households as single parents, or are households included in which there is a husband, but that husband is not the head? If the woman is the principal breadwinner, this could be the case. If not, perhaps "the proportion of households headed by unmarried women" would have been more accurate.

The article also states: "After a divorce takes place the wife's income usually drops precipitously while the husband's drops only marginally." The writer was probably trying to say that the wife's standard of living drops precipitously while the husband's drops marginally. This remains the unfortunate predicament of many women upon divorce, especially if they've been staying home raising children. It seriously affects the quality of life of the children if the mother retains partial or total custody.

Laura Matthews Santa Monica, Calif.

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