"A well ordered family" in colonial times

After reading the document "A Well Ordered Family" I can see very clearly that colonial families were run quite differently than they are today. It supprised me how the man had all of the power in the relationship, but now women tend to be more dominate. That of course is not always the case. A lot of relationships are a partnership; the work is shared and the love is mutual. Also now a days wives make a good amount of income and most of the time could stand on their own if need be. It also supprised me how they had to stay together no matter what. Not that it's bad because I think that a lot of families would be a lot better if the parents just dealt and went through with what they started. But there are many situations where it is almost impossible to stay together. For example, abuse. Abuse is one of the most common reasons for divorce, and I'm not just talking about men abusing women. I can name countless times when the woman is in fact abusing the man. So I don't understand how people back in colonial times could stay together through everything. In a way colonial times would have been better but women have to have power as well.