What if Jana, Jinger, Jessa, & Jinger had been boys?

[gustava]

Would the Mullet have kept having children? Would the boys have been taught "womanly" chores such as cooking and washing dishes? Would they be married off by now????

[Talitha Cumi]

I suspect Michelle would have a) had a nervous breakdown, b) quit having kids, or c) both. She was falling apart when she had five little ones, wasn't she? Until God sent her someone to do her laundry? If the Howlers had been first, I don't think she could have dealt.

Do we know how old Jana was when she first became a buddy?

[CrazySister]

I think I've read that jana was 5, but not positive. Yes, I think your speculation is right on as far as if boys would be doing more inside-the-house things if there'd been so many boys first. The Arndt's are a good example of "reality" - the strict gender ideas only work if there are enough girls!

[ophelia]

I agree to all the things said before.. those poor girls. keeping their parents "vision" alive..

[dawbs]

the boys would do 'girl' jobs.

They wouldn't have changed anything, they'd just have changed how they assigned things.

[Tator Tot Tubby]

Smuggar wouldn't be as smug. He wouldn't have been waited on his whole life.

[geniebelle6901]

Probably not, wouldn't they have to have a home and their own business before they approach a young woman's father? Even with the TLC money, I don't see that being enough to set up that many young men with their own business to run and house to live in.

[Tator Tot Tubby]

I don't think they'd have a show, honestly. Part of their "appeal" is that even with that many kids, things function very smoothly. People are drawn in by the organized chaos. If they didn't have Jslaves, things wouldn't be as organized. Michelle would appear frazzled and they wouldn't have attractive young women to draw in viewers (I'm sure that there is an audience that just likes the girls)

[CanadianHippie]

Probably not, wouldn't they have to have a home and their own business before they approach a young woman's father? Even with the TLC money, I don't see that being enough to set up that many young men with their own business to run and house to live in.

They'd all be working for Josh (by that I mean actually doing his job for him) or John David (who actually goes out and does shit to make money), possibly married with kids. They'd just need a couple of sons with businesses, then they can have older brothers hire younger ones. Boob mentioned in one episode that at least one of the howlers was looking forward to working for Josh.

[Letgo]

I think they boys would have had to work much more if the first half dozen kids had been boys. Or there would not have been as many children. Think of what would have happened had the howlers been the first six...

[Sweetpea1]

Smuggar wouldn't be as smug. He wouldn't have been waited on his whole life.

QFT

[lilwriter85]

It is hard to tell what Mullet would have done if she had six boys first. She might have taught them to do some housework. ZsuZsu had three boys first and she seems ok with the idea of teaching her boys to do some cooking and housework. With Boob and Mullet who knows what they would have done. Boob could have strongly objected to the idea of sons doing a lot of cleaning and cooking. He would have pushed Michelle into having more kids and eventually they would have had girls. When those girls came of age, the buddy system and certain chores would have been modified.

Right now if there were 6 adult Duggar sons. Some of them would still be living at home. Boob would have done his best to set up a business system in which they all work at the car lot, towing, or doing real estate stuff.

[RR88]

The Duggars would have had six kids (Josh through boy-version of Jinger) instead of more than 1.5 dozen of them.

[Kitty]

Honestly, I'm surprised Jim Bob hasn't done any father-son business stuff. He does real estate, Josh has a car lot, John-David tows cars, and it looks like Joseph will be working for JD. So... what about Josiah and the Jeneric Boys? (sounds like a name for a rock band, 4srs) Josiah did College Plus, did any of the older bros? Maybe Josh. Jim Bob can't afford to send all of them to College Plus. I'll bet that Joseph and younger will be divided up between JB, Josh, and JD. Unless one of them leaves and writes a tell-all book/blog.

If the J'slaves were boys, all of the kids would be completely fucked and so would JB&M. I suspect more than a few would be working at a fast-food restaurant or on a farm to feed the rest of the family.

[3 is enough]

The Duggars would have had six kids (Josh through boy-version of Jinger) instead of more than 1.5 dozen of them.

I agree with this. If Michelle was going nuts with 7, and she had the 4 girls, there is NO WAY she would have continued to pop out baby after baby with no prospect of helpers. She has said that God blessed them with a bunch of girls early on to help her.

[bananacat]

I think Michelle would have kept going with the breeding, and the boys would have just done "women's work" until some daughters eventually came along. The boys actually used to do "women's work", including being buddies to younger children. That practice has stopped now that the daughters are adults themselves and can do it all. I think in the past boys have even been in charge of cleaning bathrooms.

[ElphabaGalinda]

It may have taken them a while to break down and allow their songs to do women's work, but eventually, they would have done all the cooking, cleaning and buddy raising that the J'Slaves do, only until some daughters came along. Michelle and JB probably would have had less kids because she was having a mental breakdown with 7 and it probably would have taken her a while to give up the pretense of the strict jender roles. But no way would she have done any work, so she would have done whatever necessary to have her kids do it for her.

[JenniferJuniper]

I don't necessarily think all of the boys would be doing "women's work". In the pioneer days when such a situation happened, usually the smallest or weakest older boy would be assigned to be mother's helper with the housework and younger children while the other boys took on the typically manly roles.

Still, I think having 6 boys first may have cut the number of pregnancies down to about 10. Having four older girls gave the JB and Michelle a license to over-breed.

[jesssnerch]

Honestly, I'm surprised Jim Bob hasn't done any father-son business stuff. He does real estate, Josh has a car lot, John-David tows cars, and it looks like Joseph will be working for JD. So... what about Josiah and the Jeneric Boys? (sounds like a name for a rock band, 4srs) Josiah did College Plus, did any of the older bros? Maybe Josh. Jim Bob can't afford to send all of them to College Plus. I'll bet that Joseph and younger will be divided up between JB, Josh, and JD. Unless one of them leaves and writes a tell-all book/blog.

If the J'slaves were boys, all of the kids would be completely fucked and so would JB&M. I suspect more than a few would be working at a fast-food restaurant or on a farm to feed the rest of the family.

Isn't this against Gothard's teachings?

[Kitty]

Isn't this against Gothard's teachings?

I'm not sure of all of Gothard's teachings, so I don't know. If it is, maybe it's not so surprising then.

[bananacat]

I also think that if the earliest kids had all been boys, they might have just accepted a lower standard of cleanliness. There's one fundie family that makes the kids wear the same clothes for a week to save on laundry, and another one (or maybe the same one), where the kids bathe only once a week. ZsuZsu's kids and house are constantly filthy. There are a lot of ways to cut corners if you really don't want your sons doing girly things.

[Feberin]

I also think that if the earliest kids had all been boys, they might have just accepted a lower standard of cleanliness. There's one fundie family that makes the kids wear the same clothes for a week to save on laundry, and another one (or maybe the same one), where the kids bathe only once a week. ZsuZsu's kids and house are constantly filthy. There are a lot of ways to cut corners if you really don't want your sons doing girly things.

I think this would have been part of it. But I also think that they wouldn't have quite so many children. I really think Boob and Michelle try to get pregnant, which has led to their freakishly large family even by QF standards. I think they would still have a lot of kids but not quite epic proportions.

On a side note I could see Josiah going into real estate. He seems more outgoing then his older brothers and not as into cars and such. And since he's a fundie boy I think real estate is the only approved career choice that would fit his personality.

[Tator Tot Tubby]

They would have moved Grandma Duggar in with them a lot earlier.... Maybe they'd have tried to get Amy as a "helper"

You think if most of the kids were boys, everyone would have their own bed?

[Bethella]

I also wonder if Michelle's breakdown would have been more severe. Instead of the piano teacher helping with the laundry saving her, she may have ended up hospitalized or even institutionalized. Or at the worst end of the spectrum, there could have been an Andrea Yates type situation where Michelle went completely off the deep end and hurt the children.

[Minerva]

I think this would have been part of it. But I also think that they wouldn't have quite so many children. I really think Boob and Michelle try to get pregnant, which has led to their freakishly large family even by QF standards. I think they would still have a lot of kids but not quite epic proportions.

On a side note I could see Josiah going into real estate. He seems more outgoing then his older brothers and not as into cars and such. And since he's a fundie boy I think real estate is the only approved career choice that would fit his personality.

How does a QF family not try to get pregnant, though? "We're doing our part, and we're not doing anything to stop it" translates to actively trying in my opinion.

ETA: If the J'slaves had been boys, Jim Bob would have 4 fewer hymens to obsess about, and he might over all be more chill because of that.