Ugly Betty

I really enjoyed the pilot for Ugly Betty. I thought it was a very funny sitcom and it may even be masked behind a layer of feminism, but I think really when it came down to it, it wasn’t very feminist at all. First, the main character is not ugly. She does not have nice clothes and has braces and is chubby. But she is not ugly. She is probably still thinner then the average American women and her face is very pretty. Braces are something that will be removed and do not determine a persons beauty. The main character is probably at worst, average (that is in the normal world not the fashion world). But the show is not called Average Betty. It’s called Ugly Betty. Doesn’t this further serve to make women feel as though they to are “ugly” even if they are actually average like Betty? I think this goes hand in hand with the beauty myth. If you aren’t a super model (tall, super thin, young) then you just aren’t pretty. There is no recognition of what is actually average/normal and what is inordinate (i.e. 115 pound, six foot tall super models).

Aside from perpetuating the beauty myth I think the show also portrays powerful women is very mean, ruthless, bitches. For example, the woman who was next in line to be the head of the magazine does horrible things to try and sabotage the company. Many television shows, movies, and other media like to portray any women that have power as cut throat bitches. I think this image gets carried over into real life as well. One example that comes to mind is the constant jokes and stabs being made at Hillary Clinton. She is a very powerful women. She is also very smart, well educated, and does actually have work experience to back up her positions in power. But I think she is generally portrayed as a bitch. If men are powerful they are decisive. If women are powerful they are bossy. If men get to the highest levels of their field then they are self made men. If women do so then they were cut throat to get there. I think this is an unfair double standard and I don’t think Ugly Betty does anything to debunk this stereotype. It may be a really funny show but I don’t think it’s making any great strides for women’s equality.