Sister Wives: Exposing the Sense Behind Polygamy

Reality TV has invited us into the lives of all sorts of situations, experiences and families throughout the years. From celebrities to everyday people, young 20-somethings who party their life away to families with 8+ kids trying to make ends meet, the list can go on and on. One of the most recent lifestyles we have been invited to witness is the life of a polygamist family in a TLC Network series called Sister Wives.
 
The basic premise chronicles the life of how one man shares his time, affection and loyalty with three wives. Which as the season unravels it’s revealed he is also courting a new woman who will possibly become wife number four (and she does). In being completely honest, I thought the show would be ridiculous. I thought, how did a show like this even make it on air? One man, sharing himself with three or four women, shoot three or four women being ok with sharing one man seemed insane to me. The lifestyle made no sense for my taste but the curiosity in me beat out my distaste for the subject and I ended up catching the reruns of the series one Sunday night.
 
To my surprise, the more I watched the less disdain I found myself having for the sister wives. I still would never choose to embrace the lifestyle of polygamy for myself but a part of me grew to at least understand how this crazy dynamic might make sense for others. The Brown family consists of husband Kody Brown; wives Meri, Janelle, Christine and recently added Robyn; and a band of over a dozen children. The series takes us through a rollercoaster of emotions and insecurities for all the wives, it gives us a glimpse of how the Brown’s live, how Kody juggles the demands of being a husband and father, while taking on the interests of inviting a new wife into the family. Setting preconceived judgments aside, the sister wives bond amongst themselves and Kody’s seemingly genuine affection for each of them begins to oddly make sense.
 
The family, aside from the multiple marriages, seems to function like any other. The kids love ALL their brothers and sisters, the wives cherish their bond and ability to lean on each other for support, they bicker, they express themselves, they get through the rough patches and enjoy the good times and move along as best they can. I’m not sure if putting faces and names to such an abstract concept as polygamy was what helped me to sympathize with the lifestyle choice, but at the season’s finale I actually felt bad that I thought the show was going to be about a creepy pervert hiding behind the guise of “faith” to excuse his fetish for being with multiple partners and dumb ladies who let a man sucker them into believing it was ok when it’s not.
 
I guess at the end of the series I can add one more topic to my tolerance list, polygamy. I know I wont be converting to the practice any time soon, but for those who embrace it, I might think twice before being so quick to criticize your choice. The Brown's are currently undergoing court proceedings that could land them jail time since polygamy is officially illegal in the state of Utah which is where they reside and deep down I’m actually rooting that they will get through the incident as one big happy family, minus the jail sentence or fines. Like anything else in life there are people who abuse the intentions of faith, take advantage of others emotions, manipulate the standards of relationships for selfishness, but in this case I don’t think the Brown’s fall under those categories. If the family dynamic works for them, then more power to them. They don’t come off as forcing the idea of polygamy to their children, to the public or to others they come in contact with. The show just seems to want to give others a better understanding of how the practice of polygamy has its reasoning and for that I commend the Brown’s for opening their lives up to the public and sharing that. Whatever happens now, I can only wish them the best.