2008 Woodie Awards
Sex and the sisterhood
Allison Dow
Issue date: 6/9/08 Section: Forum
Like a fine wine, fancy cheese or a vintage Chanel dress, some things just get better with time. I have to say, "Sex and the City" is no different. As a fan of the show, I was extremely happy to see the movie the day it came out, even though my friend Jessie woke me up with a hangover at 9 a.m. to go see it.
In the past, women haven't had a lot of role models to look up to that were single, self-sufficient and successful. The most idolized women fell amongst the likes of Jackie Kennedy.
As kids, we are read fairy tale stories of princesses being whisked away by princes, we're given dress-up outfits to play pretend marriage and many of our first toys consist of fake kitchens, vacuums and toy ironing boards.
Perfect trophy wives, fairy tale marriages and plastic kitchens are ideas we have pushed into our brains from childhood. But what they really represent is what's important. With the dawn of color television, long before Carrie Bradshaw ever taught us about the za za zoom, an ideal woman was a cheerful housewife. The idea of a Carol Brady or a June Cleaver wasn't the creation of a woman's desires; it was the brainchild of men who learned how to advertise. A wife who took care of her family, dressed properly, cooked delicious meals and kept a clean home was a woman who won the admiration and love of her family. It was presented that to achieve happiness, women needed to earn the approval and love of the people around her. So if June Cleaver was using Pine-Sol on her floors, and everyone was happy, you can sure as Hell bet everyone watching television was thinking about Pine-Sol.
But consumers grew wise. We are less open to a fake life we can't relate to. Women have earned the right to vote, to make reproductive decisions and hold the same jobs as men. So much for the happy housewife waiting for the approval of her family. And while there are plenty of shows out there aimed at men, and plenty of sexist ones aimed at women (makeover shows, bridal shows, true love shows), no one has captured the attention of groups of women like Sex and the City.
In the past, women haven't had a lot of role models to look up to that were single, self-sufficient and successful. The most idolized women fell amongst the likes of Jackie Kennedy.
As kids, we are read fairy tale stories of princesses being whisked away by princes, we're given dress-up outfits to play pretend marriage and many of our first toys consist of fake kitchens, vacuums and toy ironing boards.
Perfect trophy wives, fairy tale marriages and plastic kitchens are ideas we have pushed into our brains from childhood. But what they really represent is what's important. With the dawn of color television, long before Carrie Bradshaw ever taught us about the za za zoom, an ideal woman was a cheerful housewife. The idea of a Carol Brady or a June Cleaver wasn't the creation of a woman's desires; it was the brainchild of men who learned how to advertise. A wife who took care of her family, dressed properly, cooked delicious meals and kept a clean home was a woman who won the admiration and love of her family. It was presented that to achieve happiness, women needed to earn the approval and love of the people around her. So if June Cleaver was using Pine-Sol on her floors, and everyone was happy, you can sure as Hell bet everyone watching television was thinking about Pine-Sol.
But consumers grew wise. We are less open to a fake life we can't relate to. Women have earned the right to vote, to make reproductive decisions and hold the same jobs as men. So much for the happy housewife waiting for the approval of her family. And while there are plenty of shows out there aimed at men, and plenty of sexist ones aimed at women (makeover shows, bridal shows, true love shows), no one has captured the attention of groups of women like Sex and the City.
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