In 'Yesteryear,' a tradwife influencer wakes up in the time period she’s fetishized
In this episode of NPR's Book of the Day, author Caro Claire Burke discusses her novel about a "trad wife" influencer who finds herself transported to the 1855 farm she has romanticized online. Burke explains how her protagonist, Natalie Heller Mills, embodies contradictions between the traditional values she promotes and her actual ambitious, independent behavior. The novel explores society's tendency to idealize the past while ignoring the harsh realities of life without modern conveniences.
The conversation examines broader themes including the dangers of nostalgic longing for "the good old days" and the complex relationship between social media, surveillance, and identity. Burke describes how constant performance for online audiences blurs the line between authentic self and constructed persona, and how this affects our relationship with reality. The episode invites reflection on how we curate different versions of ourselves across various contexts and audiences.
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1-Page Summary
Dangers Of Romanticizing the Past and "Trad Wife" Nostalgia
Ayesha Rascoe introduces Natalie Heller Mills of Yesteryear Ranch, a flawless Christian homesteader who shares her idyllic farm life with 5 million Instagram followers. Author Caro Claire Burke describes Natalie as embodying a national fantasy—the perfect mother and ideal wife who seamlessly fulfills the "trad wife" ideal, even as her perfection rests on contradictions her audience ignores.
Elissa Nadworny explains how Burke's novel transports Natalie from her curated Instagram world to an actual 1855 farm, where she encounters the harsh reality behind her romanticized posts. Without electricity or modern comforts, Natalie wakes in an icy bed to find her surroundings familiar yet alien—her barn decaying, her children almost unrecognizable. She even injures her foot in an animal trap on her first day. Burke uses Natalie's disorienting experience to expose how nostalgic longing for "the good old days" ignores the true hardships of life without modern conveniences like double ovens and central heating.
Burke characterizes her novel as a "be careful what you wish for" story that explores society's obsession with moving backward. She suggests this backward-looking nostalgia pervades not just trad wife culture but society more broadly, challenging readers to reflect on why romanticized visions of the past hold such persistent appeal.
Contradictions Between Espoused Values and Actual Behavior
Natalie's character embodies a profound contradiction between the traditional, patriarchal values she claims to represent and her ambitious, independent behaviors.
Burke explains that while Natalie was raised with values of female subservience and patriarchal authority, her life diverges markedly from these ideals—she becomes her family's breadwinner and controls household decisions. Burke highlights the irony: Natalie supports fundamentalist values centered on subservience, yet her ambition and assertiveness lead her to reject these roles in practice.
This ongoing conflict between community values and Natalie's personal drive contributes to her difficult personality. Burke describes Natalie as an antihero—ambitious, manipulative, acidic, and emotionally distant from her children and husband. Her difficult personality is framed as a symptom of her unresolved struggle between deep ambition and the subservience expected by her upbringing.
Performance, Surveillance, and Social Media's Effects on Identity and Reality
Burke emphasizes that surveillance and performance are central threads throughout the novel. From her earliest age, Natalie learns she's watched by patriarchal religious authority, establishing her comfort with being surveilled. This seamlessly carries into her adult life on social media, where gaining followers heightens her awareness that strangers might recognize her anywhere. This amplification of surveillance fundamentally changes Natalie's relationship to reality.
Natalie's life is marked by constant blurring between authentic identity and constructed persona. Burke describes how Natalie, shaped by extensive time online, experiences ongoing paranoia about being filmed—especially after finding what appears to be a broken microphone in her yard. Burke notes that modern life forces people to perform for various audiences, curating personas across contexts. Natalie's paranoia reflects a broader reality: distinguishing between what's real and what's performance becomes increasingly difficult as surveillance and performance intertwine.
Burke shares her personal struggle with maintaining identity even with "a fraction of Natalie's fame," noting this challenge affects anyone navigating their online presence. The novel invites readers to reflect on their own performative roles, prompting questions about whether we act differently with different audiences and how much of our self-presentation is consciously a performance.
1-Page Summary
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- Some individuals find genuine fulfillment and meaning in traditional roles, and their positive experiences should not be dismissed as mere nostalgia or fantasy.
- The appeal of "trad wife" or homesteading lifestyles can stem from a desire for simplicity, self-sufficiency, or closer family bonds, not just escapism or denial of hardship.
- Modern portrayals of traditional lifestyles can serve as inspiration for sustainable living or community building, rather than solely promoting regressive values.
- Not all who engage in online self-presentation or "performance" experience negative psychological effects; some find empowerment or community through these platforms.
- The critique of nostalgia may overlook the fact that every era has its own unique challenges, and longing for aspects of the past does not necessarily mean ignoring its difficulties.
- The existence of contradictions in public personas is not unique to "trad wife" influencers; it is a common feature of many public figures and does not inherently invalidate their message.
- Some people may consciously choose to blend traditional and modern values, finding a balance that works for them without experiencing internal conflict.
- The focus on surveillance and performance may overstate the negative impact of social media, as many users are able to maintain healthy boundaries and authentic relationships online.
Actionables
- you can keep a daily log for one week where you note every time you consciously change your behavior, language, or appearance for a specific audience (online or offline), then review the log to spot patterns and decide which performances feel authentic or draining
- This helps you recognize how often you shift personas and lets you intentionally choose which aspects of yourself you want to present, rather than defaulting to what you think others expect.
- a practical way to challenge nostalgic fantasies is to pick one modern convenience (like a microwave, central heating, or running water) and go without it for 24 hours, then write down the unexpected difficulties and benefits you notice
- This experiment grounds your understanding of the realities behind idealized lifestyles and helps you appreciate both the hardships and the comforts of your current life.
- you can set aside ten minutes to write two short lists: one of values or roles you feel pressured to embody (from family, community, or social media), and another of ambitions or traits you genuinely want to pursue, then compare the lists to identify any contradictions and brainstorm small steps to reconcile them
- This exercise helps you clarify where your personal goals clash with external expectations and gives you a starting point for making choices that align with your authentic self.
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Dangers Of Romanticizing the Past and "Trad Wife" Nostalgia
Natalie's Instagram Embodies the Idealized Traditional Homesteading Fantasy Appealing To Those Seeking Simpler Times
Ayesha Rascoe introduces the world of Yesteryear Ranch, where Natalie Heller Mills, a flawless Christian homesteader, raises her children on a picturesque farm in Idaho. Natalie drinks raw milk, eats farm-fresh eggs, and shares every detail of her carefully curated lifestyle with her 5 million Instagram followers. Caro Claire Burke, the author, describes Natalie as the embodiment of the nation's deepest dreams and fantasies: the perfect mother every woman wants to be and the ideal wife every man desires. Natalie becomes a "manic pixie American dream girl," seamlessly fulfilling the online ideal of a "trad wife"—even as her perfection is built upon contradictions that the audience chooses to ignore.
Novel Depicts 1800s Farm Life vs. Online Romanticization
Elissa Nadworny explains how, in the novel, Natalie, famed for her trad wife posts romanticizing the simplicity of farm life, is suddenly transported back to 1855. In this stark new reality, she lives on a real 19th-century farm, devoid of electricity, filled with bland food, battered furniture, and none of the comforts of her carefully staged Instagram images. Burke highlights a pivotal scene where Natalie wakes up shivering and confused, her luxurious surroundings replaced by an icy, lumpy bed and a rough wooden floor. Everything is familiar yet alien: her children almost recognizable but not quite the same, her old barn and chicken coop now decaying and decrepit. Natalie, thrust into the harshness she once fetishized, quickly discovers the dangers lurking in the reality of the past—she even injures her foot in an animal trap on her first day.
Through Natalie's disorienting experience, Burke underscores how the nostalgic longing for "the good old days" fails to account for the true hardships and discomforts of life without modern conveniences. Double ovens, central heating, and air conditioning turn out t ...
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Dangers Of Romanticizing the Past and "Trad Wife" Nostalgia
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- While the novel highlights the hardships of 19th-century life, some people are drawn to "trad wife" or homesteading aesthetics for reasons beyond nostalgia, such as a desire for self-sufficiency, sustainability, or a closer connection to nature, which can be meaningful and practical in modern contexts.
- The appeal of traditional roles and lifestyles does not necessarily require a wholesale rejection of modern conveniences; many individuals blend traditional values with contemporary technology to create fulfilling lives.
- Not all proponents of "trad wife" culture or homesteading are unaware of historical hardships; some are well-informed and intentionally choose aspects of the past that align with their values while acknowledging and avoiding its drawbacks.
- The critique of nostalgia may overlook the fact that every ...
Actionables
- you can spend a weekend living with only the technology and comforts available in your home 100 years ago to directly experience the difference between nostalgia and reality; for example, turn off electricity, cook with basic tools, and use only candlelight to see how your daily routines and comfort levels change.
- a practical way to challenge idealized online portrayals is to keep a daily journal comparing your real-life experiences with any lifestyle images or posts you see, noting what’s left out or glossed over and how your own needs and comforts differ from the fantasy.
- ...
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Contradictions Between Espoused Values and Actual Behavior
Natalie’s character embodies a profound contradiction between the traditional, patriarchal, and Christian-flavored values of female subservience she claims to represent, and the ambitious, independently-driven behaviors she actually enacts.
Natalie Exemplifies Traditional Christian Views of Female Subservience and Patriarchy, but Her Actions Contradict Them
Despite Claiming Allegiance to Traditional Gender Roles, Natalie Becomes Her Household's Primary Breadwinner and Maintains Control Over Family Decisions
Caro Claire Burke explains that Natalie has been raised in a community espousing values of female subservience and deference to patriarchal authority, reflecting power hierarchies present in many religious frameworks. Natalie may claim to uphold these ideas or at least recognize them as the standard in her environment. However, in practice, her life diverges markedly from these ideals: she quickly becomes the breadwinner for her family and takes control over household decision-making. Burke highlights the irony in Natalie’s character: while she supports outward expressions of fundamentalist values centered on subservience and gendered power, her ambition and assertiveness lead her to reject these roles in her actions.
Irony in Her Character: Embracing Fundamentalism but Rejecting Its Behaviors Through Ambition
Burke notes the inherent irony and tension in Natalie’s life—she embraces, at least rhetorically, the fundamentalism of her upbringing, but fundamentally chafes against and ultimately defies its social prescriptions through her personal ambition and need for control. This contradiction becomes central to the character’s psychological development and narrative complexity.
Value Conflict Causes Natalie's Difficult Personality and Emotional Distance
Natalie's Conflicting Desires For Power Versus Her Subservient Role
Burke observes that the ongoing conflict between community-espoused values a ...
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Contradictions Between Espoused Values and Actual Behavior
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- Natalie’s actions as primary breadwinner and decision-maker may not necessarily contradict her espoused values if she interprets her responsibilities as acts of service or necessity rather than ambition.
- The assumption that ambition and assertiveness are inherently incompatible with traditional or Christian values of womanhood may overlook examples of strong, influential women within religious or patriarchal contexts.
- Natalie’s emotional distance and difficult personality traits could stem from factors unrelated to value conflict, such as personal temperament, external stressors, or family dynamics.
- Outward support for community values does not always indicate internal acceptance; Natalie ...
Actionables
- you can keep a daily log where you note moments when your actions or decisions differ from your stated beliefs or values, then reflect on what motivated your choices and how you felt afterward; this helps you spot patterns of internal conflict and understand the roots of your behavior.
- a practical way to explore the tension between personal ambition and community expectations is to write two letters to yourself: one from the perspective of your community’s values and one from your own ambitious self, then compare them to identify specific areas of conflict and emotional triggers.
- you ca ...
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Performance, Surveillance, and Social Media's Effects on Identity and Reality
Social Media's Link to Surveillance, Performance, and Religious Fundamentalism
Caro Claire Burke emphasizes that surveillance and performance are central threads throughout the novel. From Natalie’s earliest age, she is taught that she is watched by a patriarchal form of religious authority. This ingrained monitoring establishes her comfort with being surveilled, which carries seamlessly into her adult life on social media. Burke explains that as Natalie gains more Instagram followers, her awareness of being watched heightens—she realizes that strangers might recognize her at any moment in public spaces like grocery stores. The amplification of surveillance from religious roots to social media exposure fundamentally changes Natalie’s relationship to reality.
Contextual Performance Blurs Authentic Identity and Constructed Persona
Natalie’s life is marked by a constant blurring between authentic identity and constructed persona. Burke describes how Natalie, shaped by extensive time online, experiences ongoing paranoia about being filmed or becoming the subject of a reality television hoax. This sense of being perpetually watched is ignited further when Natalie finds what appears to be a broken plastic lapel microphone in her yard—a moment that makes her hyper-aware of the possibility of surveillance. Burke notes that modern life forces people to perform for various audiences, curating personas across contexts. Whether adjusting how one interacts with coworkers versus a spouse or finding the perfect angle for an Instagram photo, the act of putting on a show becomes second nature. Natalie’s paranoia and angst reflect a broader reality: in contemporary society, distinguishing between what is real and what is a performance becomes increasingly difficult, as surveillance and performance become intertwined.
Navigating Social Media: Maintaining Identity Amid Public Per ...
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Performance, Surveillance, and Social Media's Effects on Identity and Reality
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Clarifications
- In many traditional societies, religious authority often enforces strict moral codes through constant observation and judgment. This creates a culture where individuals internalize the feeling of being watched, shaping their behavior accordingly. In the novel, this early experience with religious surveillance conditions Natalie to accept and even expect monitoring in other areas of life. Thus, the transition to social media surveillance feels natural, as both involve external scrutiny influencing personal identity.
- "Patriarchal religious authority" refers to a system where religious power is dominated by men who enforce strict rules and moral codes. This authority often monitors and controls behavior, especially of women, to maintain social order. Surveillance in this context means constant observation to ensure conformity to these religious norms. It creates a culture of self-policing, where individuals internalize the feeling of being watched.
- Religious upbringing often involves constant moral monitoring by an authority, teaching individuals to internalize being watched. This internalized surveillance creates a habit of self-regulation and performance to meet expected standards. On social media, this translates into curating an idealized persona to gain approval and avoid judgment. Thus, early religious surveillance shapes how one manages visibility and identity online.
- Finding a broken plastic lapel microphone suggests covert surveillance or secret recording, implying someone might be spying on Natalie. Lapel microphones are small devices used to capture audio discreetly, often in media or surveillance contexts. Its presence triggers paranoia because it symbolizes invasion of privacy and hidden observation. This object blurs the line between reality and performance, intensifying Natalie’s fear of being constantly watched.
- A "constructed persona" is a version of oneself deliberately shaped to fit social expectations or specific audiences, often highlighting certain traits while hiding others. "Authentic identity" refers to a person's true self, including genuine feelings, beliefs, and behaviors, regardless of external pressures. Social media and public performance encourage people to create constructed personas to gain approval or manage impressions. This can blur the line between who someone really is and who they present to the world.
- "Performing" for different audiences means adjusting how you behave, speak, or present yourself depending on who is watching. This concept comes from sociology, where people are seen as actors playing roles in various social settings. For example, you might act more formal at work but relaxed with close friends. This behavior helps manage others' perceptions and maintain social harmony.
- Constant surveillance can lead to heightened anxiety and stress, as individuals feel they must constantly monitor their behavior. This can cause a loss of privacy and a sense of vulnerability, impacting mental well-being. Over time, people may alter their actions to conform to perceived expectations, leading to a fragmented or inauthentic sense of self. Persistent feeling of being watched can also foster paranoia and distrust in social environments.
- Influencer culture refers to the social phenomenon where individuals gain fame and influence primarily through social media platforms by sharing curated content. This culture pressures people to constantly present an idealized version of themselves to attract and maintain followers. The struggle with identity arises because individuals may feel compelled to perform or alter their true selves to meet audience expectations. This can blur the line between authentic identity and a constructed persona, causing internal conflict.
- "Limited fame" refers to a moderate level of public recognition that is not widespread celebrity but still noticeable. It creates pressure to manage how others perceive you, often leading to heightened self-aware ...
Counterarguments
- While surveillance and performance are significant themes, not all individuals internalize surveillance from religious or social media contexts in the same way; some may actively resist or remain unaffected by such influences.
- The link between religious upbringing and comfort with surveillance may not be universal; many people with religious backgrounds develop strong boundaries and skepticism toward external monitoring.
- Social media use does not inherently blur the line between authentic identity and constructed persona for everyone; some users consciously maintain clear distinctions between their online and offline selves.
- The experience of paranoia or anxiety about being watched is not a universal outcome of social media engagement; many users report positive or neutral experiences.
- The idea that modern life compels everyone to perform for multiple audiences may overstate the case; some individuals prioritize authenticity and transparency regardless of context.
- The difficulty in distinguishing between reality and performance may be more pronounced for public figures or influencers, but less so for private individuals with limited online presence.
- Maintaining ...
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