Mad Men Puts Things in Perspective

So recently on my Netflix account (how did we ever live without this miraculous invention?), I’ve been taking out every DVD of the TV show Mad Men and watching them incessantly with my roommate. Aside from just being an AWESOME TV Show (seriously, rent it on Netflix – it’s captivating), it’s actually a fairly interesting peek into life in the 1960’s – and the way women were perceived, treated, and the way they behaved back then.

See, while there was a revolution of ideas about women’s role in society with the second wave of the feminist movement and a struggle for women to get back into the workforce in the way they were during WWII; many women struggled to cope with the “boys’ world” that dominated many industries and offices around the world.

In season 1 (the one I’m in the middle of); we’re introduced to the world of Sterling Cooper on Peggy, Don Draper’s new secretary’s, first day. She’s introduced to the pool of secretaries – all women – and the people in charge – all men. She’s told to keep her place, and to tend to Mr. Draper’s needs in order to be successful during her time at Sterling Cooper. Over time, she has to fend off advances from nearly every guy in the office; and even a patronizing speech from a doctor recommended by Joan, the head of the secretarial pool, as a good place to get birth control.

Her doctor told her not to become the “town pump” just because she was on the pill, advising that she did not have to sleep around just because she potentially could – that personal and offensive comment would never be allowed today by any standards, but Peggy just sat there and took it.

The women in Mad Men live in a difficult world – one where they are viewed as maids, mothers, and secretaries instead of one where they are seen as potential CEOs, professors, or even mid-level management in a company.

The women in the show use phrases like “brainstorming? That sounds hard!” and can’t even answer simple questions about their makeup use without looking confused. The men, behind closed doors call them “chickens”, stand up and salute when a woman bends over to get something, and just talk about them like sexual objects; choosing which one is their favorite and pointing out their worst – and best – features. In the later episodes I’ve seen here and there, when Peggy gets a larger, more important position in the company, she’s treated like an idiot, like she has to prove herself far more than anyone else.

I could go on and on like this about the majority of women in the show. Of course, there are female characters that have a significant amount of power – the Jewish woman who owns her own department store; and Peggy, who isn’t afraid to break free from the pack and behave like a functional human being instead of a “stupid broad”.

Now don’t get me wrong – I LOVE Mad Men. I wish there were more than 12 episodes in a season. I actually think that this sexism is displayed so prominently in order to make us take a step back and observe how far we’ve come, and how far we still have to go. Do I think everyone is getting that message who watches this show? Do I think that those who idolize and look up to the power these men may get the wrong idea? Probably not. And those who look up to the power these men have over women in particular clearly don’t get the point of the show.

No. Let’s not make this a bashing of a great show. Better yet, let’s make this a discussion of how far we’ve come and how far we’ve yet to go. While I can now attend college and apply for top positions without being laughed at; or called a “chicken” or a “broad” behind my back; I will still make 70 cents to every dollar that a man earns on average when I get out of school; and men are still in most of the leadership positions in nearly all sectors – especially in areas like business and politics, ones which carry a lot of weight in American society.

Sure, nobody sexually objectifies me at work or in classes; and sure nobody comments on my appearance to my face or comments on whether or not I should be on birth control because I am or am not “that kind of girl.” But these stereotypes still exist silently in many – many judge peoples’ abilities and personalities and lives in general on how they look; and there are still many people who think of birth control as a way for young women to sleep with men whenever they please.

So the question is, as we dance around all the ways we have – and haven’t – changed, did we really come so far? Do we really have so far to go?

Editor's Note Some other interesting feminist articles on Mad Men at:

The Washington Post - on the character of Joan "bringing curvy back" The LA Times - The Women of Mad Men NY Magazine - on the character of Peggy