So I have recently become very devoted to a series (available on Netflix!) that is about the high-stakes legal world, called "Damages". This show is filled with exciting cliff-hangers, a well developed plot, and lots of witty dialogue, but one thing in particular that stands out to me is that the plot circles around two female actresses, Glenn Close as Patty Hewes and Rose Bryon as Ellen Parsons.
Patty Hewes is the brilliant, fearsome, litigator who runs her own law firm and is a well-known legend in the legal world. Ellen Parsons is a very ambitious and bright lawyer fresh out of law school. While this show does an accurate job of representing the struggles of women in high positions (Patty and Ellen are often referred to as "bitches", men in the show try to use sexist language and sex-related threats to keep them "in their place"), it does not make that a key focus of the show. I think that this is important, because no one wants to watch a show that feels like a public service announcement; I've personally seen shows like this that dwell uncomfortably on things like the importance of birth control or equality towards the gay community or the disabled community. While these are undoubtedly extremely important issues that should be addressed in some form, I believe that it must be eased in as naturally as possible, lest they come off as trying to hard or only appealing to a narrow audience. "Damages" makes the idea of women in power seem so natural that one would wonder why anyone would have a problem with it. It is such a good show that I have heard men and women alike proudly recommend it, thus allowing it to sidestep the gender specific trap of the "chick-flick" genre.
Hate Patty Hewes because she is manipulative and cold, love her because she is often the only one brave enough to stand up to the bullies of the corporate role, but don't let such a trivial thing as gender affect your views.
Patty Hewes is the brilliant, fearsome, litigator who runs her own law firm and is a well-known legend in the legal world. Ellen Parsons is a very ambitious and bright lawyer fresh out of law school. While this show does an accurate job of representing the struggles of women in high positions (Patty and Ellen are often referred to as "bitches", men in the show try to use sexist language and sex-related threats to keep them "in their place"), it does not make that a key focus of the show. I think that this is important, because no one wants to watch a show that feels like a public service announcement; I've personally seen shows like this that dwell uncomfortably on things like the importance of birth control or equality towards the gay community or the disabled community. While these are undoubtedly extremely important issues that should be addressed in some form, I believe that it must be eased in as naturally as possible, lest they come off as trying to hard or only appealing to a narrow audience. "Damages" makes the idea of women in power seem so natural that one would wonder why anyone would have a problem with it. It is such a good show that I have heard men and women alike proudly recommend it, thus allowing it to sidestep the gender specific trap of the "chick-flick" genre.
Hate Patty Hewes because she is manipulative and cold, love her because she is often the only one brave enough to stand up to the bullies of the corporate role, but don't let such a trivial thing as gender affect your views.
I agree that this is an important first step. It reminds me a lot of the show Modern Family, in which a gay couple are shown as parents that have the same successes and challenges as the straight parents in the show. Normalization is a huge hurdle in the fight toward equality, and while I would very much like to see TV shows and movies that do attack the problem head on, it is very important to also have shows that portray women as having faults and strengths separate from their gender just as male characters do.
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